Press release
Health Ministers welcome the approval of the 2018 Dormant Accounts Action Plan – €6.466m for health-related projects
From Department of Health
Published on
Last updated on
From Department of Health
Published on
Last updated on
Minister for Health, Simon Harris TD, today (Tuesday) welcomed the announcement from the Department of Rural and Community Development of the approval of the 2018 Dormant Accounts Action Plan.
Minister Harris, in welcoming the additional funding of more than €6.46m that has been made available to the Department of Health for a wide range of health-related projects, said:
“The measures being supported are additional to the work of my department and aim to support some of the most vulnerable and disadvantaged groups in society."
Welcoming the funding for projects aimed at older people, people with dementia and carers, Minister Daly said:
“This significant allocation will have a positive and lasting impact on the lives of those who will benefit from these projects."
Minister Daly stressed the importance of improving dementia care and resources across the country, noting that funding would be used to create timely, tailored and individualised community supports across the country, as well as improving dementia training for thousands of HSE home care staff.
Minister Daly also warmly welcomed funding for physical activity programmes for older people, saying:
“Research shows that regular exercise among older people can reduce risk factors for chronic disease, improve functional independence, and offer longer good health. This funding will help people live healthier, happier lives.”
Minister McGrath welcomed funding of €775,000 specifically for disability projects, noting that:
“The measures approved in this Action Plan will put in place a number of supports to provide equality of opportunity for people with disabilities and their families and improve the quality of their lives, and help build a social network for people with disabilities within their community.”
Minister Byrne welcomed the provision of €710,000 for a community development and health programme for particularly disadvantaged communities. She said:
“This programme will empower these communities to make positive changes to their health and wellbeing, building on the objectives of Healthy Ireland."
Minister Byrne also welcomed the allocation of €500,000 to support initiatives which address factors contributing to health inequality.
ENDS
| Community Development and Health Programme | €710,000 |
| National Survey of Existing Transport Provision within Disability Services | €80,000 |
| Development of an eLearning Module for New Directions | €95,000 |
| Community Transition Co-Ordinators | €450,000 |
| Health Promotion Initiatives for People with Disabilities and their Carers/Families in Community/Own Homes | €150,000 |
| Supporting the Healthy Ireland Fund | €500,000 |
| National Rollout of Dementia Training Programme for HSE Home Care Staff | €974,667 |
| Dementia Resource Centres and Outreach Project | €2,200,000 |
| National Intellectual Disability Memory Service | €501,547 |
| Diagnosis of Young Onset Dementia | €35,000 |
| Dementia Community Activation Co-ordinator | €90,000 |
| Pilot Rollout of the Carer's Needs Assessment Tool (Single Assessment Tool) | €180,000 |
| Grant Call for Physical Activity Programmes for Older People | €500,000 |
Funding will provide a community development and health programme for particularly disadvantaged communities. 7 projects will have a geographic spread across Dublin, provincial cities and rural towns and will include a specific project for those living in the direct provision system. Two projects will be in Dublin, two in provincial cities and two in rural towns. In addition a further project will be focused on those living in the direct provision system.
This programme will implement in a practical and tangible way the objectives of Healthy Ireland, by using a community development model to empower disadvantage communities to affect positive change on their health status. The programme will draw on the experience and lessons of the pilot Building Healthy Communities programme developed by the former Combat Poverty Agency and supported by the Department of Health and the HSE.
Each project will work with a community of up to 2,000 to 3,000 people. The project will engage with residents through community organisations, women’s groups, sports clubs, local schools and primary care centres. In particular, projects will seek to develop a core group of local people with knowledge of health issues and who could in turn work in the local community to affect positive change in health behaviours and living conditions.
The programme will lead to a better understanding of the social determinants of health and the role that communities can play in achieving positive social change and will build confidence and capacity in the local community to address their health issues, in conjunction with local health providers.
Events will be organised to promote positive action to improve health and wellbeing in the selected communities. Practical examples being considered include better access to healthy foods in local shops and schools, the provision of local health and wellbeing courses, safer play areas for children, and initiatives to connect vulnerable groups (eg young lone parents) with community health services.
An evaluation will be carried out to measure the outcomes of the project and to identify best practice for health engagement in similar disadvantaged communities.
| Measure | Allocation from Dormant Accounts Fund | Expenditure Profile |
| Community Development and Health Programme | €710,000 | Expenditure of €320,000 in 2018 and €390,000 in 2019 |
Dormant Accounts funding will be used to carry out a national survey of existing transport provision within disability services to establish the extent of the provision, the cost of the provision, identify the gaps in provision and make recommendations for better use of existing resource.
| Measure | Allocation from Dormant Accounts Fund | Expenditure Profile |
| National Survey of Existing Transport Provision within Disability Services | €80,000 | Expenditure of €40,000 in 2018 and €40,000 in 2019 |
New Directions is the policy for the provision of day services and supports for People with disabilities. It is grounded in 12 supports to assist people with disabilities to achieve active citizenship and community participation
The module will be designed around the 12 Supports outlined in New Directions in order to achieve best outcomes for people with disabilities. This will primarily be a training tool for front line staff and managers of day services and will have a section applicable to all stakeholders. It will require consultation with all stakeholders, it will set out the learning objectives to ensure people with disabilities and other stakeholders fully understood the policy and how it works.
The HSE National New Directions Implementation Group will develop a Tender process to progress the development of eLearning modules for New Directions. When developed, these online training tools will be available for management and frontline staff in HSE funded day services. Consideration will be given as to whether or not these modules should be mandatory training for all front line staff in the provision of disability day services.
| Measure | Allocation from Dormant Accounts Fund | Expenditure Profile |
| Development of an eLearning Module for New Directions | €95,000 | Expenditure of €40,000 in 2018 and €55,000 in 2019 |
Under this measure, Dormant Accounts funding will be used for the provision of 9 transition co-ordinators who would work across the non-priority congregated settings sites to support people with disabilities transitioning to community living to make meaningful connections and build network within the community.
Transition co-ordinators will assist in ensuring people with disabilities will not be isolated in community living. The co-ordinators will engage with people with disabilities to establish their will and preference and establish what is available in community by engaging with other government departments and sectors.
There will be one Community Transition Co-ordinator (CTC) allocated to each HSE Community Healthcare Organisation (CHO) area. The CHO in collaboration with the local non-priority congregated settings will agree which individuals will be supported by the CTC, which may be a specific group within a service, within a geographical area or a number of individuals with specific needs.
The role of the CTC is to work with individuals and support them to adjust to community living and engage in their community and participate as citizens, which differs from that of Local Area Co-ordinators, who are more focussed on building the capacity of the wider community and developing more general pathways /supports for people with disabilities.
The focus will be on supporting individuals where there are known challenges in community integration. This may relate to individuals preparing to move from congregated settings or those that have already transitioned. CTCs can work most effectively when they engage closely with a small group of people to support their transition. It is anticipated each CTC will support between 4-8 people over the course of the project, working with no more than 4 people at a time for a period of 6-12 months.
| Measure | Allocation from Dormant Accounts Fund | Expenditure Profile |
| Community Transition Co-Ordinators | €450,000 | Expenditure of €180,000 in 2018 and €270,000 in 2019 |
Dormant Accounts funding will pilot this initiative in 3 Community Health Organisation Areas with a range of health promotion initiatives targeted specifically at people with disabilities and their families/carers. It is proposed that this will be linked closely with Healthy Ireland and the COMPASS Health Ireland Implementation Plan 2018-2022.
This proposal aims to afford people with disabilities, and their families, appropriate support to promote and manage their health and wellbeing in line with Healthy Ireland Framework. Areas for focus will include healthy eating and active living (nutrition and cooking, mobility and exercise), personal health matters, (screening services and primary care supports) and community involvement (accessing local supports i.e. clubs/groups that promote social inclusion and wellbeing- walking groups, art groups etc.)
Within each pilot Area there will be a focus on engaging with the target group through a range of stakeholders including the disability service providers, community health workers/projects, HSE health promotion, LCDCs etc in order to raise awareness of the support needs of people with disabilities and promote the mainstreaming of initiatives to the greatest extent possible.
| Measure | Allocation from Dormant Accounts Fund | Expenditure Profile |
| Health Promotion Initiatives for People with Disabilities and their Carers/Families in their Community/Own Homes | €150,000 | Expenditure of €50,000 in 2018 and €100,000 in 2019 |
The Healthy Ireland Fund is intended as an innovative mechanism to stimulate and support inter-sectoral action and partnership working to implement Healthy Ireland, the national framework to improve health and wellbeing. It is aimed at supporting evidence-based initiatives to support implementation of key policies and strategies under Healthy Ireland, including the Obesity Policy and Action Plan, the National Physical Activity Plan, Tobacco Free Ireland, the Sexual Health Strategy and others, and will have a focus in supporting measures aimed at children and young families and disadvantaged groups or communities.
The Fund is streamed through various strands, Strand 1 relates to Local Community Development Committees (LCDCs) and Children and Young People Services Committees (CYPSCs) and every local authority area has received funding. Strand 1 funding is being used to support local implementation of health and wellbeing actions from Local Economic and Community Plans and Children and Young People’s Plans that align with the Healthy Ireland and Better Outcomes and Brighter Futures policies. The second strand of funding includes a range of projects to support the National Physical Activity Plan, with a particular focus on supporting children and other groups to avail of opportunities to access and participate in various initiatives.
As part of this measure, Dormant Accounts Funding will be streamed in particular to initiatives that address factors contributing to health inequality.
| Measure | Allocation from Dormant Accounts Fund | Expenditure Profile |
| Supporting the Healthy Ireland Fund | €500,000 | Expenditure of €500,000 in 2019 |
People with dementia are one of the most marginalised and socially excluded groups in society. Training and Education is a priority action area in the National Dementia Strategy. Though 45% of publicly funded home care is utilised by people with dementia/ cognitive impairment, many homecare workers have limited opportunity for dementia related education and training. The National Dementia Office intends to provide training to a total of 3,900 HSE home care staff over 3 years and additional funding from the Dormant Accounts Fund will be requested to run this measure in the Dormant Accounts Action Plan 2019.
| Measure | Allocation from Dormant Accounts Fund | Expenditure Profile |
| National Rollout of Dementia Training Programme for HSE Home Care Staff | €974,667 | Expenditure of €218,933 in 2018 and €755,734 in 2019 |
A 2017 mapping exercise carried out by the NDO and Alzheimer’s Society of Ireland showed significant underdevelopment of dementia-specific services nationally, resulting in isolation and exclusion.
The Dementia Resource Centre and Outreach Project will test the concept of community-based dementia hubs in three locations across the country. The centres will provide timely, tailored and individualised community supports to people living with dementia and family carers, enabling them to live as well as possible within their local communities, maximising their potential and ability to live at home.
These will be developed in identified black-spots e.g. counties where there are no dementia-specific day centres and limited other resources. The centres will work with and complement the Post-diagnostic and Diagnostic pathway projects currently being undertaken by the NDO and link to the Memory Technology Resource Rooms which are being established in each CHO area through previous Dormant Account Funding.
The Dementia Resource Centres will be established over a two-year period and will undergo continuous evaluation. Total reach for the three Dementia Resource Centres is approximately 1,500 contacts per centre per annum (750 people with dementia and 750 family carers).
| Measure | Allocation from Dormant Accounts Fund | Expenditure Profile |
| Dementia Resource Centres and Outreach Project | €2,200,000 | Expenditure of €766,667 in 2018 and €1,433,333 in 2019 |
The risk of developing dementia is much higher among those with an intellectual disability and among those with Down syndrome in particular. Dormant Accounts funding will be used for the establishment of a National Intellectual Disability Memory Service that will be a centre of excellence in proactive dementia assessment and diagnosis for people with an intellectual disability (ID), particularly people with Down’s syndrome given their increased genetic risk for dementia.
The service will operate a central coordinating national memory clinic, based in a Dublin teaching hospital, with several satellite clinics distributed nationally. The locations will reflect concentrations of persons with ID at risk, and the location of established HSE-provided memory clinics. It will also offer bespoke training programmes to staff and family members supporting persons with ID with or at risk for dementia. A dementia assessment and comprehensive diagnostic work-up for dementia will be offered to persons with ID with suspected cognitive changes, arising from local dementia screening. Finally, the project will provide expert consultation which will also include person-centred recommendations following a diagnosis of dementia to ensure that the person is in a position to live well and to die with comfort and dignity.
The impacts of this service include the documentation of incidence and prevalence for those with intellectual disabilities at greatest risk of developing dementia; address the gap in knowledge regarding the recognition of dementia in people with an ID; and offer an expert assessment and diagnostic support to staff and carers of people with IDs at risk of dementia.
Based on the hiring of two whole-time clinical nurse specialists in dementia, an estimated 650-700 people could be assessed annually by the memory service. Additional funding from the Dormant Accounts Fund will be requested to run this measure in the Dormant Accounts Action Plan 2019.
| Measure | Allocation from Dormant Accounts Fund | Expenditure Profile |
| National Intellectual Disability Memory Service | €501,547 | Expenditure of €247,329 in 2018 and €254,218 in 2019 |
Younger people with dementia usually experience greater difficulty accessing a dementia diagnosis and fitting into existing dementia service provision, which is generally tailored to the needs of older people. Dormant Accounts funding will be used for a review of young-onset dementia diagnostic processes and practices to inform future service development needs.
| Measure | Allocation from Dormant Accounts Fund | Expenditure Profile |
| Diagnosis of Young Onset Dementia | €35,000 | Expenditure of €35,000 in 2018 |
Dormant Accounts funding will be used to fund a post of Dementia Community Activation Coordinator for a further year. This post has been co-funded by the HSE and the Alzheimer Society of Ireland under a unique partnership for a one year period to the end of 2018. The Dementia Community Activation Coordinator is working with national organisations and key community stakeholders to support community dementia champions across Ireland. The Coordinator will seek to grow the number of champions and people within communities to take action to create sustainable dementia inclusive communities. The funding will cover the Coordinator’s salary and programme costs such as organising events.
| Measure | Allocation from Dormant Accounts Fund | Expenditure Profile |
| Dementia Community Activation Coordinator | €90,000 | Expenditure of €90,000 in 2018 |
Carers often experience social exclusion and isolation arising from the burden of caring. Funding is sought to pilot the recently developed Carers Needs Assessment tool in one HSE area over two years. This will assist in identifying and meeting the needs of carers across all care groups and will track health and wellbeing outcomes for carers over time.
| Measure | Allocation from Dormant Accounts Fund | Expenditure Profile |
| Pilot Rollout of the Carer’s Needs Assessment Tool (Single Assessment Tool) | €180,000 | Expenditure of €60,000 in 2018 and €120,000 in 2019 |
A large proportion of older people do not engage in sufficient regular exercise, which can expose them to increased risk of falls and injury, increased risk of disease, and loss of independence. Through this grant call for Physical Activity Programmes for Older People in Ireland, it is anticipated that funding can be supplied to formal groups facilitating physical activity specifically aimed at improving health markers in older adults and focus on continued functional independence, and run in inclusive settings. Dissemination should be through recognised bodies such as Healthy Ireland or the HSE, to improve recognition and uptake. The importance of engagement in physical activity by older people is highlighted by many strategies, not least the National Positive Ageing Strategy, Healthy Ireland, Strategy to Prevent Falls, and the Healthy and Positive Ageing Initiative. It is expected that older people across many settings, such as in the community and in residential care, should benefit from the promotion of these programmes, and benefit will be felt through reducing risk factors for chronic disease and improving functional independence. The impact should be evidenced through goal evaluation and longer good health.
It is proposed to conduct a grant call for Physical Activity Programmes for Older People in Ireland. The aim of this project is to identify formal programmes aimed at improving health markers in older people. Operating under Healthy Ireland and/or the HSE, programmes will be run in the community and other group settings across the country. The beneficiaries are this project will be older people living in the community and in residential care, who may be at risk of comorbidities as a result of reduced engagement in physical activity. The impact to participants in programmes should be evidenced through a goals and outcomes evaluation.
Further funding will be sought for this measure in the Dormant Accounts Action Plan 2019.
| Measure | Allocation from Dormant Accounts Fund | Expenditure Profile |
| Physical Activity Programmes for Older People in Ireland | €500,000 | Expenditure of €500,000 in 2019 |