Remarks at a Reception for Carers
Áras an Uachtaráin, 12th June 2012
Dia dhíbh go léir inniu.
A Dhaoine Uaisle, tá fáilte romhaibh go léir chuig Áras an Uachtaráin anocht chun comóradh 25 bliana de Chumann na gCúramóirí a cheiliúradh; is iomaí rud atá bainte amach ag an gCumann le linn na tréimhse seo chun lámh cúnta a thabhairt do dhaoine ar fud na tíre a chuireann am ar leataobh chun aire a thabhairt do dhuine dá gclann atá tinn nó atá faoi mhíchumas.
[Ladies and Gentlemen, you’re all very welcome here this evening to Áras an Uachtaráin to mark the twenty fifth anniversary of the founding of the Carers’ Association; an organisation which has done so much over the last quarter century to improve life for the many people across the country who devote their time to caring for an ill or disabled family member. ]
I am well aware of your achievements over the last 25 years and the service that the organisation has provided to family carers including emotional and practical supports and promoting the interests of family carers and those receiving care in the home. These important goals you set yourself have had the important result of providing many years of assistance to those caring in Ireland, and I am pleased to recognise the important work of the Carers Association with this reception today.
The values of social cohesion, empowerment and equality in society that you espouse to ensure that carers are afforded the same opportunities and resources available to other groups remind us that society can only function when we value the essential humanity, dignity and contribution of each member.
We all must know – accept now that there is no such thing as a typical carer. A carer can be young or old, male or female. They can be carer to a parent, a child, a sibling or a member of their extended family. The circumstances under which an individual becomes a carer can also vary considerably. Some may have been propelled into that role with a great suddenness, with no time to plan or to prepare themselves, either practically or emotionally, for such a seismic shift in their lifestyle. For others it may be a more gradual process, a growing awareness that a family member is becoming more dependent on day to day care and less able to manage alone.
However, whatever the individual circumstances, all carers have one thing in common; the ability to commit their lives selflessly to the emotional and physical needs of a loved one; to centre their days around that person and to ensure they have all they need to live their lives as fully and comfortably and enjoyably as possible.
Perhaps insufficient attention has been given to the fact that at the time of the 2006 census, 160,917 Irish citizens identified themselves as carers. We also know that when the most recent census figures are published later this year, that figure is expected to have risen substantially. In fact, it is estimated that approximately eight per cent of the adult population in Ireland are now working as carers for a family member.
Some of those carers are here today, but each of you is representing many, many other carers across the country whose lives are devoted to looking after a frail or elderly loved one. What you do is not easy. At times it must feel overwhelming, hugely burdensome, unfair even. There must be many days when you struggle with tiredness, stress and loneliness; times when you find it hard to separate your caring role from that ‘other’ and equally important relationship you have with your parent, child, sibling or friend; when you feel that your own identity and personality have been lost or deeply buried somewhere out of reach.
I know that for you, and for so many other carers around the country, the work of the Carers’ Association is a vital lifeline; an enormous source of emotional and practical support. Without the work of the Association, who advocate on your behalf, provide you with essential information, set up and run support groups and do so much more crucial work, the difficult road you have chosen would be an even harder one. I would like to thank the Association for all they have done, and continue to do, to help and support carers and their families through their difficult, and often arduous daily journeys.
Is mór an tuiscint agus an meas atá agam dóibh siúd a thugann aire den scoth do chara nó do dhuine dá gclann. Cuireann sibh seirbhís den scoth ar fáil do dhaoine ar fud na tíre. Sa chaoi seo is féidir le duine atá tinn nó faoi mhíchumas maireachtáil laistigh den a theach féin lena chuid cuimhní thart air nó uirthi de réir mar a théann sé/sí i ngleic lena g(h)alar díblithe nó a m(h)íchumas.
[I would also like to express my deep appreciation, and indeed admiration, for those who devote their days to caring for a beloved family member or friend. Each one of you here today, and the many other people around the country that you represent, provides an essential service which allows someone affected by illness or disability or old age to live as comfortable and normal a life as possible within the familiarity of their own home and to be surrounded by their own possessions and unique memories as they struggle with the effects of their debilitating illness or disability. ]
It is a difficult task you undertake, and also an enormously valuable one; a task whose significance is unfortunately not always sufficiently understood or fully recognised. It is, of course, not a task you accept because you want praise or accolades or admiration, but one you undertake out of love and genuine care. Nonetheless it is of crucial importance that the work you do is not overlooked or taken for granted and that we all remind ourselves of the true value to society of the thousands of people around Ireland who step up and care, day in day out, for a loved one who wishes to live, for as long as possible, in their own home.
I am therefore particularly delighted that you have come here this afternoon, because tomorrow sees the start of National Carers’ week. This is a time when we get to acknowledge family carers and the vital work you do. A time when your contribution to society is recognised and when members of that society will have the opportunity to increase their awareness of the difficulties you face, the concerns you have, the supports you require, and the enormous and positive difference you make to the lives of so many sick, elderly or incapacitated people in this country,
I thank you again and congratulate you on the wonderful contribution you make, day in, day out, to your family, your community and to our society as a whole.
Go raibh míle maith agaibh go léir.