'More investment needed in home help'
Cllr Michael Clarke emphasised the need for more investment in home help services.
Independent Ireland candidate in Sligo Leitrim, Cllr Michael Clarke, has called for more funding for home help services.
Cllr Clarke described the home help service as "a Godsend to many older people and their families".
"The brilliant work the home help carers do and the quality of care is priceless. It is clear though that this service has not been sufficiently funded in recent years and there is a serious shortage of home help carers in the Sligo, Leitrim and Donegal constituency, meaning that our elderly and their families are not able to avail of this invaluable service when they need it and instead have to consider more expensive, private services and/or assume carer responsibilities."
Cllr Clarke said older people had "worked all their lives to build the fifth richest economy in the world and deserved better".
"We need proper home help services. This is something that I and my colleagues in Independent Ireland will address as a top priority when in Government.
"With sufficient funding, the home help/support service helps our older people to remain in their own homes for longer, reducing and delaying the demand for expensive private care or nursing home care and/or reducing the risk of presenting at hospitals, which are already creaking at the seams. As importantly, this home service keeps our elderly as content and as comfortable in their own homes for as long as possible, reducing feelings of loneliness or isolation, and it really alleviates pressure on their younger family members who are already spread too thin.
"Increasing the funding and resources for home help is a no-brainer for Independent Ireland. We want to ensure this unacceptable situation does not continue and that older people receive in a timely manner the home help care they so richly deserve."
