Many people with dementia are being cared for in long-term institutions despite this being against their wishes and against Government policy, the Alzheimer Society of Ireland (ASI) has said.

It has launched its 2017 pre-Budget submission, which is urging the Government to invest more in home care supports, so that more people with dementia can stay in their homes for longer.

"As a society, we are channelling people with dementia into institutional care. Government policy is to support people to stay at home, yet between 2009 and
2015, funding for long-term residential care has increased, while funding in home care has been cut.

"Also, people have a legal entitlement to long-term residential care, while no such entitlement exists for home care," the ASI said.

It pointed out that between 2009 and 2015, investment in long-term residential care increased by €84 million, while investment in home care fell by €11 million.

It insisted that home care should be seen as ‘an integral part of long-term care in its own right', and not just as a solution to the hospital crisis.

"Appropriate home care can keep people well in the community and out of hospital and long-term residential care. It is also vital in supporting family carers, who provide the vast majority of home-based care for people with dementia," the ASI said.

It is calling on the Government to invest €67 million in 2017 in home care supports for people with dementia. It said that ‘as a starting point', this will meet the needs of 10% of people with dementia who are living in the community.

The ASI believes that such an investment will reduce unnecessary hospital admissions for people with dementia and avoid unnecessary, premature or inappropriate admissions into long-term residential care.

The €67 million the ASI is looking for would be broken down as follows:
-€36 million to be spent on home care supports. This is worth €500 per week, meeting the needs of 1,400 people
-€31 million on enhanced packages. This is worth up to €1,000 per week, meeting the needs of 600 people.

There are currently over 55,000 people with dementia living in Ireland, with over 60% of these currently living at home. While some will require long-term residential care, many could remain at home if they were provided with the right support and rehabilitation.

Ireland currently has the second highest proportion of people aged 65 and older living in nursing homes and hospitals in Europe.

The ASI is calling on all members of the public to sign its petition to show support for this pre-Budget submission. You can sign the petition here