Madam,

Having attended the ‘Carers Rights Day’ organised by Ceredigion County Council as a member of the Community Health Council I attended one of the arranged meetings of the day namely ‘Meeting With Carys James - talking with carers caring for someone with dementia’, which was also attended by Cllr Catherine Hughes representing Ceredigion council.

The pressure expressed by those carers present would possibly be difficult to understand for anyone not familiar with the behavioural patterns of the patients suffering with dementia and, I should add, Alzheimer’s.

I expressed my concern, as I have written before on the future care available for our elderly and infirm, because the days of four, five, six or even more children all living in close proximity to their aged or infirm parents, looking after them as a family unit to the end of their days, have gone. An average family of now 2.4 children, often working many miles away from the parental home, gives rise to the situation of non-family care assistance being available, leading to a reliance on the county council for its provision. Also with the retirement age nearing 70 years old many of the retirees are nearing or receiving necessary care themselves.

What was interesting and informative in this meeting was to hear the plight of the Ceredigion County Council representatives present who talked of the surmounting costs of care for our elderly in Ceredigion. Also there was an insight into the ever-increasing number of residents requiring this care.

It has to be understood that demand for care has long been outstripped by the ability to finance the need and unless there is more pressure put by both our Assembly Members and Member of Parliament to adequately finance what should always be a priority, ie the care of our elderly and infirm, then our local authorities will be unable to provide the ever-increasing demand for the service which sadly is already happening to some extent.

Not being one brought up with a ‘silver spoon in my mouth’, as is the case for so many of us, our expectations are for extreme care in the spending of our taxes with priority on necessary spending only at this time of austerity, which understandably does give rise to anger being expressed when frittered away on the unnecessary.

The meeting brought home to me the need for more liaison between Ceredigion Council, the care providers and the unfortunate residents in need of care provision.

Yours etc,

Pat Bates, Penparcau, Aberystwyth.

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