****************************************************
Following is a question by Dr Hon Fernando Cheung and a written reply by the Secretary for Labour and Welfare, Mr Matthew Cheung Kin-chung, in the Legislative Council today (February 4):
Question:
Quite a number of social workers and carers of persons with disabilities (PWDs) have relayed to me that the short-term residential care service (respite service) provided for PWDs not only enables PWDs to live in the community on a long-term basis but also allows carers to take a short break. However, since respite service is in short supply, PWDs need to wait for quite a long time for the service. Some PWDs have no alternative but to switch to long-term residential care services, and this not only increases social costs but also deprives PWDs of the choice of living in the community. Furthermore, the information on respite service provided on the computerized central platform set up by the Social Welfare Department is outdated. As carers of PWDs and social workers have no way of knowing the latest utilization of respite service places in various residential care homes, they must make enquiries with residential care homes one by one on their own. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) of the overall utilization rate and waiting time of respite service at present, with a breakdown by the type and degree of disability of the PWDs;
(2) whether it has formulated a long-term strategy to increase the number of respite service places, with a view to improving the community care services provided for PWDs so as to avoid an increase in demand for long-term residential care services due to insufficient respite service places;
(3) of the current supply and demand situation of the respite service provided for PWDs with high nursing care needs (such as PWDs with stomas and those who need to use ventilators); whether the Government has plans to increase the number of the relevant respite service places; and
(4) how often the information on respite service provided on the computerized central platform is updated, and whether it has assessed if the information can meet the needs of users; of the factors constraining the updating of information more frequently?
?
Reply:
President,
My reply to the questions raised by Dr Hon Fernando Cheung is as follows:
(1) There are currently 156 places for day respite service in Hong Kong. Between April 2013 and September 2014, the total number of day respite service users was 2 439.
For residential respite service, there are currently 256 places in the territory. In the aforementioned period, the total number of residential respite service users was 4 685. The length of stay did not exceed 14 days for 90% of residential respite service users. Subvented residential care homes for persons with disabilities (RCHDs) provide residential respite service through designated places or casual vacancies. The service targets are persons with disabilities in need of a certain level of personal and/or nursing care which should be within the scope of the residential service to which they would like to be admitted.
At present, day or residential respite service users are not required to be waitlisted for the services through the central waitlist system. Applications can be made to the relevant service units by applicants directly or through social workers of medical social services units, integrated family services centres, special schools or rehabilitation service units. Applicants can be admitted directly by the day or residential rehabilitation service units if respite service places are available. Whether the applicants are required to be waitlisted for respite services depends on the circumstances of individual RCHDs in different periods (higher service demand expected in certain periods such as long school holidays). The Social Welfare Department (SWD) does not maintain information on the utilisation rate and waiting time of residential respite service provided by RCHDs as well as the type and degree of disability of the service users. There is no waiting list for day respite service.
(2) The Government has always strived to provide the necessary training and community support services (including respite services) for persons with disabilities. Our aim is to help them develop their potential, enable them to continue to live at home and prepare them for full integration into the community while strengthening the carers' caring capacity and relieving their pressure. This will improve the quality of life of both the persons with disabilities and their families.
To this end, the Government has implemented a series of support services. These include day care services, services of the district support centres for persons with disabilities (DSCs), vocational rehabilitation training, home care services, respite services and allied health and care services, so as to provide the necessary training and support for persons with disabilities. The Government also constantly reviews and enhances existing services. The supporting measures implemented in recent years include regularising the services under the Pilot Scheme on Home Care Service for Persons with Severe Disabilities, introducing a case management service approach for DSCs, and implementing the Integrated Support Service for Persons with Severe Physical Disabilities.
In fact, the Government allocated additional recurrent funding of $23.8 million in 2014-15 to provide extra places of short-term day respite service and residential respite service for persons with disabilities aged 6 or above, so that their families or carers may take a planned short break such as travelling outside Hong Kong or attending to such personal businesses as undergoing a medical operation. This also helps temporarily relieve these families or carers of their caring duties and alleviate their stress.
The Government has also explored alternative ways of providing respite services to meet service demand. In addition to the respite services provided by RCHDs and day rehabilitation service units, centre-based or home-based respite and support services are provided for persons with disabilities through DSCs, the home care service for persons with severe disabilities and the Integrated Support Service for Persons with Severe Physical Disabilities. For home respite service, home care workers provide care, supervision and companionship for persons with severe disabilities at their homes. The above services can, through rendering appropriate support, help persons with severe disabilities stay in the community, thus reducing the demand for subsidised residential care places.
(3) The service units currently providing high care level residential respite service include hostels for severely mentally handicapped persons, hostels for severely physically handicapped persons, hostels for severely physically handicapped persons with mental handicap, and care and attention homes for severely disabled persons. Between April 2013 and September 2014, a total of 172 residential respite service places were provided by the above service units with a total of 3 862 service users.
Moreover, the transitional care and support centre for tetraplegic patients provides services including residential respite service for tetraplegic patients (including persons with severe physical disabilities who are dependent on respiratory support medical equipment). From April 2013 to September 2014, the centre provided residential respite service for an average of five service users per month. Among the service users, two were persons with severe physical disabilities who are dependent on respiratory support medical equipment. Furthermore, the integrated support service for persons with severe physical disabilities (ISS) launched in November 2014 provides one-stop community support services, including post-discharge home-based support service, home respite service and cash subsidy, for persons with severe physical disabilities living in the community (including persons with disabilities who are dependent on respiratory support medical equipment), so as to relieve them of the burden of acquiring respiratory support medical equipment and medical consumables. SWD will closely monitor the implementation of the ISS, review from time to time the service content, and meet with the service operators and service user groups regularly to ensure effective service delivery.
(4) The service units providing designated residential respite service places will inform SWD of the vacant residential respite service places twice a month. SWD will, twice a month, upload the latest information on vacant places of all service units onto its webpage for public information. SWD will closely monitor the operation of the online system and review in a timely manner the mechanism of disseminating information on vacant places through maintaining contact with the relevant organisations.
Ends/Wednesday, February 4, 2015
Issued at HKT 13:08
NNNN
