A new plan agreed today will see more support for unpaid Carers across the region – including more respite care to give them some much-needed time off.
The Integration Joint Board (IJB), which is responsible for directing health and social care across Dumfries and Galloway, voted today to approve a three-year plan that will see more short-term care and better access to support for people caring for elderly or disabled relatives and friends.
Under the delivery plan, £2 million a year will be spent to support Carers. The bulk of the funding will go to expanding respite support, in which a care at home provider or a care home takes over looking after someone for a few days to give their normal carer a break.
Funding will also go to other forms of support for Carers.
IJB chair Andy McFarlane said: “Our community depends on its 20,000 Carers. The work they do is often unseen, often unrecognised and very often unpaid – but older people and vulnerable adults across the region simply could not manage without them.
“In December the Board approved a Carers Strategy which recognised how vital Carers are, and promised to provide them with more recognition, more access to help, and more support. Today’s delivery plan is the first step in putting these promises into effect, and we look forward to seeing more progress over the months and years ahead.”
