Vulnerable people being forgotten during pandemic - Browne

Additional measures must be taken to ensure that people are not forgotten amidst Covid concerns, according to Tipperary Sinn Féin TD Martin Browne who was alerted to a situation where a young man with muscular dystrophy was left with no home care supports after his parents contracted Covid-19.

Deputy Browne said: “Throughout the pandemic so far, I have raised on a number of occasions how people who are particularly vulnerable to Covid-19 have slipped through the net in terms of the supports they need.

“Last week I was contacted by a local young man who has muscular dystrophy, and his family. He lives in the same house as his parents who provide care for him day and night, with just one hour of homecare support services a week.

“This young man has his own quarters in the house and lives as independently as possible, but when his parents contracted Covid-19, homecare support services also ceased.

“This was despite the fact that there was access to his quarters which was separate to where his parents were isolating.

“All this resulted in his ill parents having try to cut down interactions with him for the sake of his health. Yet because home care support services were stopped because of their diagnosis, they were solely responsible for ensuring he had the essential care he needed, like the use of his respiratory machines.

“As a result, they were left alone, isolated, worried and in a terrible situation.

“I raised the matter with the HSE and on the floor of the Dáil. Thankfully the matter is now getting resolved, and I would like to thank the HSE for that.

“However, it highlights a particular challenge that people with vulnerabilities and their carers have been facing throughout the pandemic.

“As the health services struggle to deal with the challenges presented by Covid-19, there are people out there who get forgotten about and isolated due to the measures that must be introduced to tackle the spread of the virus.

“More attention must be paid to people and families who are in danger of missing out on essential services because of Covid-related measures.”