Down District Council’s Women In Local Councils group working with the South Eastern Health & Social Care Trust held an event to recognise and support the role of carers in our community.
At the event held in the Council Offices, Downshire Civic Centre, Councillor Carmel O’Boyle, the Council’s Diversity champion said: “The importance of informal care often provided by a family member such as parents, children or spouses who devote their time to providing care to their relative cannot be understated.
“It has been estimated that one in three people will become carers at some stage in their lives. This event recognises the dedication of carers who provide this vital support to dependent people, such as the sick, elderly and those with a disability who have an increasing reliance on the care provided by family, relatives and friends”.
Carers who attended the event received an inspirational talk from Anne Costello whose aim is to give people access to a wide variety of advice on how to cope with their situation, and moral and emotional support to help families live life to the full.
Joan Scott, South Eastern Health & Social Care Trust Carer’s Development Officer, said: “The care that is provided, in the main by other family members, on an unpaid basis complements our health and social care services and is a vital contribution to maintaining the health and wellbeing of a significant proportion of the Northern Ireland population. It can be demanding and tiring both physically and emotionally and this event has been an excellent way to provide care’s with methods to feel more energised whilst remaining calm and focused”.
If you look after someone with any kind of illness or disability or an older person who is frail and lives in the South Eastern Trust area and would like further information, please visit the Carers Information section under ‘Services’ on the Trust’s website:
Alternatively, you can contact Joan Scott for further information on Carer events happening in the Trust, Telephone 028 9756 5456 or email: Joan.Scott@setrust.hscni.net
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