Isle of Wight West MP Richard Quigley has used a House of Commons debate to highlight concerns about elderly Island residents with dementia being discharged to care homes on the mainland because of a lack of specialist provision locally.
Speaking in Parliament earlier this week (Monday), Mr Quigley raised what he described as growing pressures on adult social care on the Isle of Wight and called for the Island’s unique circumstances to be recognised in future funding decisions.
During the debate, he referred to several cases involving Islanders who had either been moved, or faced the prospect of being moved, to mainland care homes.
Among them was 82-year-old Graham Martin, who was transferred to Southampton despite his wife of 63 years, Carol, being unable to visit independently because of her own health issues and the cost of cross-Solent travel.
Mr Quigley told MPs that Island residents should not receive a lower standard of care because of where they live.
Richard Quigley MP has said:
“As the niece of another patient facing a mainland placement said to me: can you imagine a vulnerable, elderly resident in Westminster being sent to a care home on the Isle of Wight? It simply would not happen.
“And it would not happen because, in other parts of the country, the system would not tolerate separating vulnerable people from their families in this way – yet for the Isle of Wight, that basic standard is simply not applied.”
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The Isle of Wight West MP also highlighted the additional burden placed on families who must travel across the Solent to visit loved ones.
He said:
“What makes the Isle of Wight a particularly stark case is the added cruelty of our geography: families must cross the Solent, what some estimates have described as the most expensive stretch of water in Europe, simply to visit a loved one who is sick and in need of care that cannot be provided closer to home.”
Mr Quigley also raised concerns about the way adult social care is funded on the Island, warning that some providers are facing financial pressures despite increasing demand for services.
Responding on behalf of the Government, Health Innovation and Safety Minister Preet Kaur Gill acknowledged the concerns raised by Island families and said care should be delivered as close to home as possible.
Preet Kaur Gill MP, Minister for Health Innovation and Safety, said:
“We intend to engage with a range of partners over the coming months and will ensure that the voices of people with lived experience are at the centre of our work.
“I thank my honourable friend for bringing his constituents’ voices to this House.
“I want to recognise the very real concerns raised by families on the Isle of Wight, particularly where people with dementia or complex needs have been moved away from their homes and communities.
“While there will be circumstances where temporary placements further from home are necessary, care should be provided as close to home as possible in a way that respects the individual’s needs, preferences and connections to their family and community.”
Following the debate, Mr Quigley said he would continue working with local providers, the Isle of Wight Council and Government ministers to secure what he described as a more sustainable and compassionate approach to social care for Island residents.
