A local Senator has spoken of her deep compassion for a colleague whose elderly mother constantly worries about the future care of her adult daughter with additional needs.
Aontú's Sarah O'Reilly said she finds herself getting very emotional by the family's fear of what will happen when they can no longer provide care.
She described it as very difficult to hear and unimaginable that parents would hope a child passes away before them to avoid being moved into emergency state care.
She noted that these circumstances are, unfortunately far more common than we know.
Senator O'Reilly said the lack of long-term planning is devastating families across the constituency, and saying there is a glaring vacuum of information.
She has urged the Government to prioritise residential and assisted living facilities in future budgets, adding that the blueprints for residential units already exist, and the Department does not need to reinvent the wheel.
