Elderly protest plan to cut home help

BARRY HARCOURT/Southland Times

TAKING ACTION: Protesters (from left) Sister Francis, Teresa Riordan, Veronica McKitterick, Val O'Brien, Grace Drake, Val Robbie and Fay Kimble, of Invercargill, rally together at Wachner Place to try to stop the review process of domestic assistance for the elderly and disabled.

BARRY HARCOURT/Southland Times

TAKING ACTION: Protesters (from left) Grace Drake, Val Robbie and Fay Kimble, of Invercargill, rally together at Wachner Place to try to stop the review process of domestic assistance for the elderly and disabled.

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Elderly people in Southland are starting to stand up for their "right" to keep home help services.

About 90 people gathered at Wachner Place in Invercargill yesterday afternoon to rally against the Southland and Otago District Health Boards' review of domestic help, with the intention to cut funding.

Representatives from home help agencies spoke alongside Labour Party members to voice their opinions about the review, before allowing the elderly on stage to have their say.

Labour Party Invercargill chairwoman Lesley Soper, who organised the rally, said the district health boards were trying to save money but their actions would cost more in the long run.

"Without that little bit of extra support, people are going to try to hang out their own washing and try to dust their own home. They are going to have an accident," she said.

The result of these accidents would be more hospital beds taken up and more people being put in permanent care, costing the Government even more, Ms Soper said.

Elderly city man Morell McKenzie said his needs were assessed in 2008, and following that he received two hours' home help. Fourteen months later the help was cut to an hour and he was afraid that would happen again.

"My hours have been cut after 14 months, but I am not 14 months younger am I? You can't do much about it but grizzle," Mr McKenzie said.

Disabled Persons' Assembly delegate Brendan Murray said the Government was looking at home help agents as cleaners, but they were more than that to those they helped.

"They are not cleaners. They are not housekeepers. They are home help workers – and (sometimes) the only person that ... gives them (the disabled and elderly) someone to talk to," Mr Murray said. In a press release from the Southland District Health Board yesterday, chief executive Brian Rousseau said the board had slowed the review of funding cuts to make sure changes were implemented safely.

"We are going to a great deal of effort to ensure that this is a safe process and that those who really need the service continue to get it," Mr Rousseau said.

Ms Soper invited people at the rally to join her at a meeting with district health board staff at the old nurses' home at Southland Hospital from 12.30pm tomorrow.

scot.mackay@stl.co.nz

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