Sir, – “The Kafkaesque labyrinth” described by Máiríde Woods (“Requirement to register enduring power of attorney online only is alienating,” Letters, July 11th) in her attempt to register an enduring power of attorney with the Decision Support Service (DSS) echoes my own experience with this service in relation to one of its core functions, namely to help and uphold people’s rights to make their own decisions.
As a former CEO of Inclusion Ireland, the national association for people with an intellectual disability, I, like Ms Woods, had long campaigned for the abolition of the antiquated Victorian wards of courts system to be replaced by modern capacity legislation. I welcomed the establishment of the DSS when it was fully commenced in law under the Assisted Decision-Making (Capacity) (Amendment) Act 2022.
In 2024 I applied to the DSS for a manual application form, for a Co-Decision Making Agreement, on behalf of a person with an intellectual disability and their parents. This person faced difficulties and needed support to make important life decisions around health and personal welfare. I was doing this with the consent of all parties and in a voluntary capacity.
I requested the manual version of the application form as I felt that working with a hard copy would allow the person/applicant, their parents and myself more time and space to understand its content and to make sure that the application was filled out correctly.
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After a number of phone calls and emails to the DSS, I was finally informed that any request for a manual application form had to be made by the person with the intellectual disability.
This required filling out a four-page document explaining why they could not use the online DSS portal. Only on receipt of that document (an application form for an application form?) could the DSS consider sending out a manual version of the application form proper.
I found the whole process absurd. Like Ms Woods I ask myself who is this service for? – Yours, etc,
DEIRDRE CARROLL,
Dublin 8.
