The winter cold season is now at its peak. Temperatures are now very low and it is a well-known fact that older people are adversely affected. In fact, at this time of the year the demand for services, especially residential services, increases with an average of five new applications per day. Even the demand on our health services increase and therefore resources are overstretched.

Nevertheless, the needs are there and they have to be met. In the last week we have heard of several unfortunate cases of older people who live alone and being left to their own devices by their relatives and this triggered off an immediate action from the secretariat.

First and foremost, we reached an agreement with the relevant unions to increase the number of beds at St Vincent de Paul home so that we can alleviate the burden on Mater Dei Hospital. It is a known fact that there are several cases of older people having being left at the hospital, abandoned by their relatives and this increase has provided a breathing space. On the other hand, in order to cater for demands from the community, we accelerated the process for admission requests.

Also, in view of the rationalisation plan for admissions, the most urgent high priority cases - as assessed by the multi-disciplinary team - were tackled with as much expedience as possible. In addition, and via a public-church partnership, we have also increased the number of long-term care beds. So during this month we have successfully tackled the urgent high-priority cases and yet more needs to be done and we are currently finalising a strategic plan to tackle the long waiting list for assessments.

The lack of long-term planning over the years is quite evident because otherwise we would not be facing this critical situation. That is why we felt that there should be long, medium and short-term plans to address the problem in a holistic manner. This ranges from increasing bedding capacity to enhancing community services. In the short term, we aim to enter into further public-church partnerships and public-private partnerships and, in fact, we have already started both in Malta and Gozo and an agreement to cater for long-term care and respite services.

In the medium and long-term, we are planning an increase in the bedding capacity of government homes. At St Vincent de Paul, we have plans currently with Mepa for work on the Ruzar Briffa Complex. This €7 million project will address the current situation at the Complex, where older people are living in below-standard conditions. Once the three-year project has been completed, the complex will have an additional 125 beds.

Another two wards at St Vincent de Paul - St Francis 3 and 4 - are currently being refurbished and in a few months will be enjoying state-of-the-art facilities, together with an increase in the number of beds. This week, I also announced that after completing work on St Joseph ward 3, we will also be refurbishing St Joseph Ward 2.

We are fully aware that community-based services are crucial and shortly we will be announcing two new night shelters, one in Gozo and the other in Malta.

The needs are considerable and the solutions are neither easy nor quick. In the meantime, we will shortly be publishing the National Minimum Standards for Care Homes and will have the first draft of the Adult Protection Act. With these two important instruments we will reach important milestones to further curb abuse against older people and ensure their well-being

 

Dr Caruana is the Parliamentary Secretary for the Rights of People with Disability and Active Ageing