The largest provider of supported accommodation services for people with physical disabilities in the State will today call on the Minister for Health to champion reform in the area.
Cheshire Ireland, which operates 15 accommodation centres in 11 counties, wants Mr Martin to develop a plan to meet the accommodation and support needs of people with physical disabilities in the next five to 10 years.
Mr Martin will today launch the organisation's new three-year strategy statement, Developing Quality - Promoting Choice, in which it reaffirms its commitment to "person-centred" services for its 1,142 clients.
Cheshire Ireland owns and operates 15 accommodation services around the State for some 300 residents, ranging from large homes to purpose-built, self-contained apartments.
It provides residency as well as respite care for some 600 people per year, as well as an outreach community service consisting mainly of social support and advocacy for 260 clients.
Its chief executive, Mr Mark Blake-Knox, estimates that between 1,200 and 1,500 people are in need of the types of services the organisation provides.
Of these, just under 700 live in the Eastern Regional Health Authority area. These are people who are living in their homes with relatives or are inappropriately placed in hospital wards, including psychiatric units, or nursing homes.
This week, Mr Martin announced the release of a €50 million contingency fund to help improve services for people with disabilities, including €20 million for people with physical and sensory disabilities.
Mr Blake-Knox welcomed Mr Martin's commitment in this area. He said that at today's launch he would "ask the Minister to be a champion for people with physical disabilities".
"We would like him to say that over time he will resolve this problem of trying to provide suitable accommodation and support for people with different types of physical disabilities and acquired brain injuries."
The organisation received €14.5 million last year in health board grants, and its total income was more than €16 million.
However, it estimates that it would require €18.5 million in core funding to provide the quality of service that it seeks.
It has 500 full and part-time staff, about 100 people on community employment schemes and some 150 volunteers.
Its clients include people with multiple sclerosis, cerebral palsy, spina bifida, Parkinson's disease and acquired brain injuries, many resulting from road accidents.
Mr Niall Byrne, the charity's head of service quality, said in its new strategy statement the organisation was advancing the original vision and ethos of its founder, Mr Leonard Cheshire, a former RAF officer and decorated second World War pilot.
The publication of the statement follows a lengthy consultation with clients and funders.
Mr Byrne said its aim was to better tailor services to meet the needs of people with disabilities, assist them to live independent lives in non-institutionalised settings, with maximum integration with the rest of the community.