A woman's lengthy battle to have her 62-year-old partner with Parkinson's disease provided with respite care in a place suited to his age has been successful.
The man is now receiving regular respite care in a Dunedin McGlynn Home, which caters for people with disabilities who are aged under 65, instead of in a rest-home.
The couple, who did not wish to be named, fought for more than a year to have the care changed, with the matter brought to a head when they reluctantly went public with their concerns in April.
The issue was that because he was originally assessed as having health needs close in interest to an over 65-year-old, his funding was provided by the district health board and his care could not be transferred to the Ministry of Health (which directly funds under 65-year-olds with disability) unless both organisations agreed the initial decision was wrong.
The Southern District Health Board, at the time, did not have a respite care contract with McGlynn, an organisation which people involved with the man's care felt would cater better for his emotional and intellectual needs.
Parkinson's New Zealand field support worker Paula Ryan said she was pleased the board had realised the importance of age-appropriate care and how beneficial it had been to both the man and his partner.
"He's so happy and relaxed. I think his Parkinson's has almost improved because he feels so relaxed."
His partner, who did much of his day-to-day care, was able to have a real rest when he was in respite care, knowing he was so contented.
It is understood the board's contract with McGlynn is for one year, but Ms Ryan was hopeful it would be renewed and that the facility would be considered if there were other similar cases in future.
She praised the woman for her determination on the issue - "a lot of people would have given up".
Both Ms Ryan and the woman commended the work behind the scenes by board member Richard Thomson who became involved after the Otago Daily Times coverage of the story.
Mr Thomson said he was pleased the issue had been satisfactorily resolved.
Earlier this year, board chief executive Brian Rousseau said he was unable to answer questions related to a specific case, saying there continued to be some issue with regard to the process for managing people who are identified as "close in age and interest".
The board was working with the Ministry of Health needs assessment co-ordination service to address some of these issues.
In some instances, the length of time taken to identify the appropriate funder and provider of services "is greater than we would ideally like".
