by Kathy Masterson kathy@limerickpost.ie
HOME help workers and their clients in Limerick have welcomed announcements that the budget for home help hours will be retained to 2012 levels. Confirming that the home help budget would be retained at the same level as 2012, Minister of State Kathleen Lynch said this meant there would be no reduction in the level of service in the new year.
“Community services are the services that keep people well at home, where they want to be, and out of hospital and residential care. A key element of our overall health reform plan is to keep and treat people at the lowest level of complexity”, she said.
SIPTU Organiser Miriam Hamilton, who represented home help workers in Limerick, said the recent statements by Labour Ministers were a positive development but the urgent need of both clients and workers was a full reversal of the 1.1 million home help hours cut by the HSE in 2012.
“We need immediate action on behalf of the elderly and vulnerable in our communities who have already suffered too much”, she said.
Frank McDonnell, chairperson of SIPTU’s Limerick district committee also welcomed the move but referred to reports that home helps would no longer be permitted to do cleaning in clients’ homes and that they would only be able to deal with patient care.
He said that there was a need for immediate clarification on those issues.
The promised restoration comes after months of intense campaigning by home helps as part of the SIPTU ‘Time To Care’ campaign, which was supported by both Limerick City and County Councils.
