CASE STUDY: Couple did not qualify for allowance because combined pensions ruled them out on means test

Seven years ago Mr John Quinn came home from England to Co Roscommon to look after his brother, Dominic, who had been left incapacitated after a stroke.

Dominic was only expected to live for a few months but he survived and was cared for at home by John and his wife Betty until he died seven weeks ago.

In all that time, the couple never got any financial assistance from the State. They did not qualify for the Carers' Allowance because their combined pensions ruled them out on the means test. In 1996, the Quinns received help in the form of a home carer's scheme provided by FÁS. That lasted six months.

"We didn't want a nursing home bed because my husband had always promised Dominic he wouldn't go into a home," Betty said. John made this commitment partly because Dominic had taken on the responsibility for their fathers' care when he was frail and elderly. Because the Quinns did not qualify for the Carers' Allowance, they also did not qualify for the respite grant.

"Dominic was bedridden for the past three years and it was a two person job looking after him, there's no way one person could have managed it," Betty said.

Having worked as a professional carer in Britain for 30 years, Betty finds it hard to accept how little help was available for her family. "Apart from the financial side, there was no back-up service for care in the community and we had to fight for every little thing Dominic needed.

"We had wonderful GPs but nobody else seemed to be interested in our plight and every time we rang for information, the health board people didn't know or would give us a telephone number, which would lead to another number and usually no help at the end of the search."

When Dominic needed dental treatment, the Quinns could not find a dentist who would do a home visit for assessment. Eventually he was accepted by the nearest centre for adult dental treatment, Barrington's hospital in Limerick, but the Quinns faced a second battle to get an ambulance to bring the 78-year-old there and back.

Because Dominic was immobile, the heating had to be on 24 hours a day in his room. He suffered several more strokes over the years. "We were fortunate that there was two of us but there are hundreds of people doing this on their own, I honestly don't know how they cope."