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aware that there is a memory technology resource room in Clonmel, which supports people with technology when, for example, they are living well at home with dementia, but it is important that we get the memory clinic back up and running. These clinics are a vital

speak with a lot of knowledge on this. We are not preparing for issues relating to more and more people living longer and having dementia. The type of care we provide also needs to change. Many public nursing homes have to take high-dependency patients purely because private

want to outline to the Minister of State just how serious the situation is with the special dementia unit not being opened. I have a lady who is living in the nursing home in Cloyne. Cloyne nursing home is doing a great job but this lady … here over to Dawson Street away from where those families live. There is also another family. We were successful in saving Mount Cara. I was also involved with successful campaigns to make sure that Sarsfield Court dementia unit and nursing home was not closed down. It is really

older people managing multiple medications, people with dementia or Alzheimer's, and those with intellectual disabilities, brain injuries or mental health challenges. Carers and front-line workers know exactly what will happen without them. These packs allow people to live independently. They prevent confusion, mixed doses, missed doses … when. We heard from families caring for loved ones with dementia, who finally adapted to blister packs after enormous effort. They now feel abandoned. One daughter wrote about her 91-year-old mother who lives alone, already battling rising bills, and relies on blister packs to remain safe

project and will have 130 beds, with, as the Deputy said, 50 long-stay beds, 30 dementia-specific beds and 50-short stay beds. The CNU will provide a high-quality living environment which will be in line with all regulatory requirements. The HSE advised me it expects

live or having some input or autonomy over who will take care of them. We are living longer now and many of in this room will likely get a diagnosis of dementia or Alzheimer's and it will most likely be our family members who will become

partnership project and will have a complement of 130 beds providing 50 long-stay beds, 30 dementia-specific beds and 50-short stay beds. The CNU will provide a high-quality living environment that will be in line with all regulatory requirements. I advise the Deputy that

dementia. I was looking at their achievement, and they have done 32 marathons in 32 days. That sends shivers down my spine. I do not know how they managed to do it. I ran one marathon in 2018, and not 32 of them, as a person living with … time. I will give those lads a cheer when they are going around the pitch. I also appreciate the opportunity to speak on dementia. I do not think there is a family in the country not affected by somebody having this life-changing condition. My family

behind every one of those numbers is a person or a family living with uncertainty. Delayed diagnosis can mean delayed treatment, delayed supports and delayed planning for the future. I reference the national dementia model of care, which the Minister of State is familiar with

nothing short of abuse. Too many elderly people in our country are living in facilities that are underfunded, understaffed and under-regulated. When I saw the footage of a frail female resident with dementia, considered a serious fall risk, being left alone on the edge … this, in the words of Professor David Robinson, a consultant geriatrician in St. James's Hospital, "This is going to shorten people’s lives and the lives that they have will be more miserable because of the situation that they’re in". This is not a matter

living. Last year I was one of the first TDs to highlight the cost of the blister packs and how it was going to have an effect on many of my constituents who rely on this service. These are people who may have a disability, Alzheimer's, dementia

have done, I will put on the record the thanks of the Labour Party to all the front-line responders who put their lives at risk during Storm Éowyn to ensure the general public were protected. They have done so during similar events previously and they continue … care for her husband who has dementia. She did not know how she would care for him or how she could explain to him what was going on with this massive change in their lives. Their power only came back at the weekend. This lady, like so many

middle of a cost-of-living crisis. It is unforgivable to target the most vulnerable in our society. We are talking about tens of thousands of people, including people with conditions such as dementia and Alzheimer's disease, facing additional charges of up to €50 per month

these increases during one of the worst cost-of-living crises is cruel. It was being delivered to people in the depths of winter but that is only one part of the issue. For people who have dementia, brain injuries or mental health issues, or those who simply

provide invaluable service to the people who live in those communities as they age. I have already outlined that there are currently 60 beds open in Heather House CNU. I will once again reiterate that the new 17-bed dementia unit is at the final stage of applying

terms of being able to continue to live independently. There is €1.5 million for the Alzheimer Society of Ireland. We had the FTD Brothers, Cian and Jordan Adams, with us last May. We are going to join the Genetic Frontotemporal Dementia Initiative. I am going to advance

brothers' campaign raising awareness of dementia and through the courageous efforts of families affected by Friedreich's ataxia who have spoken publicly about the urgent need for medical intervention. In my home county, there are a number of families living with Friedreich's ataxia. I think particularly

also slow the progression of dementia. In Ireland, unfortunately, access to the shingles vaccination currently depends largely on ability to pay, with the vaccine costing up to €500 per person, which places it out of the reach of many older people living on the State pension and creates

with dementia is being evicted in County Sligo as we speak. That is how bad it has become under the watch of this Government. In his response, the Tánaiste did not actually address the question I asked, which was: what new cost-of-living measures will the Government

quickly as possible. I assure the Deputy that I am committed to working alongside HSE South West to get Primrose, the new dementia-specific unit, opened in Heather House as soon as HIQA registration is obtained. I wish to inform the Deputy that the 25-bed Daisy unit … quantity of public nursing home beds in the region to offer further long-term residential care capacity and choice for older people living in Cork city and county. The HSE continues to focus on providing a residential care service focused on quality and safety while also meeting

dementia care and disability-friendly infrastructure. Having worked in healthcare, I understand how important it is that our community hospitals and residential care homes are properly funded and resourced, especially in Donegal. From Malin Head to Arranmore Island, access to community care is vital for people living

dementia and people with disabilities. Some of them are getting a lesser hourly rate, and they are low-paid workers, than they were getting in 2008 when the austerity cuts were imposed on them. They have never had their pay restored. They have never got cost-of-living

people. That €2 million is a 30% increase and it is something that will have a meaningful impact on the ground for the lives of older people and others. Some €82 million additional funding will be allocated to the fair deal scheme to support the nursing home sector … homes, which will help in meeting the housing needs of older people. Returning to health, within that €250 million is €2.3 million towards dementia services. I launched the commencement of a national dementia register during the year. It is a key priority. We are also providing funding

government would come to such a decision because these blister packs are essential to people who have conditions such as Alzheimer's and dementia and other vulnerable categories of patient. A lot of these people are on not just one or two tablets a day but multiple tablets … have the ability to avail of these blister packs. People have gone into a chemist and learned about this during a cost-of-living crisis. Many of the people who were retrieving these medications from the chemist are themselves on carer's allowance or something like that

blister pack supports from vulnerable people at the most expensive time of year for households and in the midst of a cost-of-living crisis; and — the failure of Government and the Minister for Health to ensure coverage of MDS in the new Community Pharmacy Agreement … that these are very vulnerable patients. The vast majority of them are older people, over the age of 65. They are people with dementia, disabilities and a range of health needs, but they are the most vulnerable patients. The vast majority of people will not need blister packs