Increased Government support is needed to safeguard the health and wellbeing of family carers and those in their care, a national conference for carers heard yesterday.
Caring for Carers Ireland met in Dublin to examine the role of the 161,000 family carers in the country and to review the organisation's pre-budget submission.
Two-thirds of carers find the work of caring completely overwhelming at times, 70 per cent are strained financially and the majority score poorly on the general health questionnaire, the submission noted.
Introduction of a health promotion and prevention programme for full-time family carers was urged, as was individualisation of the carer's allowance, which now stands well below the poverty level for many care-givers, the group said.
The importance of comprehensive training and respite services, pension credits and medical cards for carers was also stressed, and an urgent need for expansion of home-care packages by the HSE was highlighted.
Demand for home-care packages far exceeded the current allocation, the group said
In its first and second years, the programme provided 2,000 and 5,000 packages, respectively, but the estimated need is 15,000 annually, according to Tom Leonard, a member of the HSE's Services for Older People National Governance Group.
That gap means large numbers of family carers are left unable to continue providing appropriate care for highly-dependent loved ones, Caring for Carers said.
The Government has committed to the development of a national strategy for family carers by the end of this year, and the advocacy group has demanded that "investment in health and social care reflect the reality of the economy in which we live".