Live-in Care in Carlow
Fully managed live-in care across Carlow from Garda-vetted, experienced and insured carers — with someone in place within a few days.
Care usually starts within days, with no HSE assessment queue
Garda-vetted carers, employed and insured by us
One primary carer, with a familiar backup
4.8/5 on Google and 5/5 on Bark
What happens next
We call you back
Someone from our care team rings you to talk through what’s needed and answer your questions.
A short conversation
Which days and hours would help, what has got harder at home, and anything we should know about your loved one.
We match a carer
Garda-vetted, employed and insured by us. Care usually starts within days, sometimes sooner.
Two ways to arrange live-in care
Flex
A carer lives in the home and provides your agreed active care hours through the day, plus the reassurance of a carer resting in the home overnight.
Constant
A small team of carers provides cover around the clock, so someone is awake and on hand day and night. It suits higher-dependency needs.
What do our live-in carers help with?
Everyday support that keeps life at home going.
Medication
Housekeeping
Overnight Help
Personal care
Meal Prep
Companionship
How live-in care works in Carlow
In Carlow, 307 people over 85 lived in single-person households in 2022, and 37.9% of the population lived outside any census town. Around Myshall, or on the high ground above Borris, homes can stand several fields apart, and an hour's visit from a carer still leaves most of the day empty. With live-in care, the carer takes the spare bedroom and becomes part of the household from breakfast to bedtime, sleeping under the same roof at night.
Your loved one has one regular carer, with a second carer they already know stepping in for rest days and holidays. Familiar faces matter to someone attending the memory clinic at the Sacred Heart Hospital, because a new person at the door every morning can unsettle the whole day. Someone who lives in also gets to know your loved one's good days and bad ones, and can tell the care manager early if things start to slip.
The carer needs a room of their own, and meals and time off are agreed in advance. Your care manager sorts out those details before the start date and keeps in touch afterwards. The carers all work for UIH directly, which also insures them, and each is a healthcare assistant, trained and Garda-vetted. Medication help means prompts and reminders. Our carers do not give injections, administer insulin or dress wounds, and anything else is for the care manager to discuss.
Live-in care across Carlow
We place live-in carers right across County Carlow. Live-in care often suits the south and east, around Borris and St Mullin's at the lower end of the Barrow valley, at Myshall on the slopes of Mount Leinster and Ballymurphy on the western flank of the Blackstairs, and at Clonegal and Kildavin close to the Wexford border. Up in the north-east, Hacketstown is near Wicklow and a fair drive from Carlow town. The room and household arrangements are checked with you ahead of the first day.
Towns and areas we cover
Carlow town
Leighlinbridge
Tullow
Hacketstown
Bagenalstown
Borris
HSE health region
HSE Dublin and South East
Main hospital
St Luke's General Hospital Carlow Kilkenny
Also nearby
University Hospital Waterford
GP out of hours
Caredoc
Growing older at home in Carlow
Carlow is small and landlocked, and only Louth is smaller. Its neighbours are Kilkenny, Laois, Kildare, Wicklow and Wexford. Life here follows the River Barrow. Carlow town, Leighlinbridge, Bagenalstown and Borris all sit in its valley, and the river reaches St Mullin's in the far south. Tullow, over to the east, stands on the Slaney. North Carlow is plain country, while the land climbs to the south and east into the Blackstairs Mountains and Mount Leinster, the highest point in Carlow.
Census 2022 counted 61,968 people in the county. Carlow town had 27,351, of whom 22,496 lived on the Carlow side of the boundary and the rest across the Barrow in County Laois. Tullow had 5,138, Bagenalstown 2,945 and Rathvilly 1,074. Some 23,466 people, 37.9% of the county, lived outside any census town.
Carlow had 9,304 residents aged 65 or over in 2022, which was 15.0% of the total and up from 7,357 in 2016. Of those in private households, 2,169 lived alone.
Carlow's public acute hospital, St Luke's General Hospital Carlow Kilkenny, stands on the Freshford Road in Kilkenny city, so a hospital stay means leaving the county. That shapes care at home in practical ways. Carers travel out to houses scattered across the townlands, and a clinic appointment in Kilkenny can take most of a day.
Sources: HSE, upmc.ie, Caredoc, CSO, TFI Local Link, Transport for Ireland, Citizens Information, Carlow County Council, Alzheimer Society of Ireland, Family Carers Ireland. Checked 23 October 2026.
Local support in Carlow alongside private care
These services are run separately from UIH, and numbers, routes and meeting days can change, so check with each one directly.
Getting about. Local Link's fixed Carlow routes, such as the 800 from Arklow, the 887 from New Ross and the 897 linking Athy, Carlow and Kilkenny, need no booking. Its door-to-door service is for eligible registered passengers who phone ahead, and wheelchair-accessible vehicles are available.
Forms and entitlements. Carlow Citizens Information Centre, 43 Tullow Street (0818 07 5130), has drop-in hours Monday to Wednesday and appointments for forms and appeals. The county council's Housing Aid for Older People grant helps homeowners aged 66 or over with repairs such as re-wiring or heating. Age Friendly Carlow is on 059 913 6207.
Memory and dementia. The Alzheimer Society (helpline 1800 341 341) runs Bethany House Day Care on Barrack Street for people with a dementia diagnosis, and Carlow has its own Dementia Adviser. A memory clinic runs every two weeks at the Day Hospital in the Sacred Heart Hospital, and the Carlow Cabin Dementia Café meets on the first Tuesday of the month.
For family carers. Family Carers Ireland supports Carlow carers from Patrick Street, Kilkenny (056 772 1424).
Setting up care after a hospital discharge in Carlow
St Luke's General Hospital Carlow Kilkenny is the public acute hospital that carries the county's name, so many Carlow families bring a loved one home from the Freshford Road in Kilkenny. If being alone at home is not yet safe, a carer can live in from the first evening and stay while strength returns. Call us during the hospital stay, and your care manager can work on having the right carer ready for the day of discharge.
Why families choose United Irish Healthcare
We employ, vet and insure every carer, and we arrange cover ourselves when your carer takes leave. Care usually starts within days, sometimes sooner, and your loved one has one primary carer with a familiar backup.
Why Carlow families choose us
Around Myshall or on the high ground above Borris, homes can stand several fields apart, and with a live-in carer, the hours a single daily visit would leave empty have company in them.
Near Hacketstown or Clonegal, the household keeps its routine when the main carer takes a break, because a familiar backup steps in for their rest days.
What families say
United Irish Healthcare have been beyond any of my expectations. UIH had us sorted in a matter of hours. I cannot thank Daniel, Olivia and Jean enough — highly recommend.
Doireann Kate Gough
We use UIH for night care for our Mam. The staff have been fantastic — it is very personal and she is comfortable with her carers.
Orla Daly
For the last 8 months Mum has had two very kind carers fulfilling her wish to stay in her own home. The peace of mind is well worth it.
Verified Google review
Frequently Asked Questions
Is there a setup or placement fee?
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Yes. A one-time placement fee covers the work of assigning your carer and setting up the placement. Your care manager includes it in your quote, and a replacement carer never costs extra.
Can I decide which days and hours the carer works?
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Yes, you can specify the days and hours in accordance with your package. The number of days is flexible; a 24/7 package means a carer is available every day of the week.
Will I have the same carer consistently?
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Yes. You will have a designated primary carer, available except when on leave, on holiday, or unwell — when a reliable secondary carer familiar to the family and client steps in.
Does the carer have to live in the home full time?
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No. Our carers have their own homes and may return to them when they are off duty.
Questions about live-in care in Carlow
Is live-in care practical for a farmhouse well outside Carlow town?
Yes, and often more so than visits. The miles from town count for much less when the carer is living on the premises. They will need their own bedroom, and shopping, appointments and other practical points are worked out with your care manager before care begins.
My loved one attends the memory clinic in Carlow. Would a live-in carer help with dementia?
In many cases, yes. One main carer, plus a backup already known to your loved one, keeps the faces around them consistent, which many people with dementia find settling. The carer can also get them ready for appointments at the Day Hospital in the Sacred Heart Hospital and keep the daily routine steady between visits.
Carlow has no emergency department. Who do we call if my loved one is unwell at night?
Caredoc runs the GP out-of-hours service for the county, from its treatment centre at the District Hospital, Carlow Health Service Complex, Athy Road. HSE lists its Carlow hours as 6pm to 9am Monday to Friday, with 24-hour cover at weekends and on public holidays. It sees patients by appointment only, so ring 0818 300 365 first, and check caredoc.ie in case the number or hours have changed. St Luke's in Kilkenny city, the hospital that carries Carlow's name, has an emergency department, and in an emergency you should dial 112 or 999. A UIH carer on shift can make those calls and stay beside your loved one.
Our house is up towards Mount Leinster, miles from any town. Can you still help?
Yes. We work across all 26 counties, so every part of Carlow is within reach, Borris, Myshall, Ballymurphy and the hill country towards the Blackstairs included. Your care manager will think through what is workable for a house that far out, and in many remote homes a carer living in proves the more dependable plan. Care usually starts within days, sometimes sooner.
We live in Graiguecullen, across the Barrow from Carlow town. Are we covered?
Yes. The census counts Carlow town across both counties, so the Laois side of the river is part of the town's figures, even though Graiguecullen comes under Laois County Council. UIH covers all 26 counties, so the county line makes no difference to the help we can arrange. Care in Graiguecullen is planned exactly as it would be on the Carlow bank.
Up to 40%
home-carer tax relief at your marginal rate
Relief is claimed on Form HK1 at your marginal rate. Always check your position with Revenue.
Other care we arrange in Carlow
Live-in Care in nearby counties
Live-in Care in Kildare · Live-in Care in Wicklow · Live-in Care in Wexford · Live-in Care in Kilkenny · Live-in Care in Laois
