Live-in Care in Galway
Fully managed live-in care across Galway 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 Galway
West of Oughterard, the houses grow further apart. In the Maam Valley, or out by Carna and Kilkieran, it can be miles to a shop, and in the Conamara municipal district 24.9% of households are one person living alone. When someone out there needs help at several points in the day, a series of short visits along those roads is hard to make work. Live-in care brings the help into the house and keeps it there.
A single primary carer lives in, and a familiar backup takes over on their days off, so your loved one comes to know both of them well. Day to day, that means help with washing and getting dressed, proper meals cooked, the house kept in order and company through the long evenings. For families living in Galway city, in Dublin or abroad, knowing someone is in the house after dark counts for a lot.
Live-in carers come to you as trained, Garda-vetted healthcare assistants, each one employed and insured by UIH. Medication support means prompts and reminders. Where your loved one needs injections, insulin or wound dressings, the carer does not do these, so your care manager fits the week around the public health nurse and family doctor. A start is usually possible within days, sometimes sooner, once we have talked through the house, the route there and where the carer will sleep.
Live-in care across Galway
Live-in care is available anywhere in County Galway, from farmhouses in the east to homes on Inis Mór. It is often the more practical choice in Connemara and on the islands, in places such as Roundstone, Letterfrack, Cleggan, Ballyconneely, Rosmuc and Inishbofin, where daily visits would leave a carer spending much of the day on the road. Send us the address and any directions a stranger would need, and we will plan the carer's arrival, their room and the changeover days with you.
Towns and areas we cover
Galway city
Tuam
Athenry
Oughterard
Salthill
Ballinasloe
Clifden
Oranmore
Loughrea
Gort
HSE health region
HSE West and North West
Main hospital
University Hospital Galway, Galway city
Also nearby
Merlin Park University Hospital, Galway city · Portiuncula University Hospital, Ballinasloe
GP out of hours
Westdoc
Growing older at home in Galway
Galway is the second-largest county in Ireland, covering about 6,149 square kilometres. West of Lough Corrib and the city lies Connemara, with the Twelve Bens and the Maumturks, Clifden as its main town, and the Aran Islands and Inishbofin offshore. The Gaeltacht runs west from parts of the city through Cois Fharraige and Conamara Theas, and takes in the Aran Islands and part of Joyce Country. East of the Corrib lie the towns of Tuam, Athenry, Loughrea and Ballinasloe.
Census 2022 counted 42,886 residents aged 65 and over across Galway City and County, up 22.9% on 2016. Of these, 32,162 live in the county council area, where over-65s make up 16.6% of residents, compared with 12.7% in the city. Among over-65s in private households, 25.2% in the county and 27.7% in the city lived alone.
The Galway Age Friendly Strategy shows how thinly that population is spread. Outside the city, 75.6% of people live in areas classed as rural, more than twice the State average, and the average distance to a GP is 6.8 km, the second-longest of any local authority. In the Ballinasloe and Conamara municipal districts the old-age dependency ratio is above 32%, against 23.1% for the State. Care at home in Galway has to be planned around long drives between houses and, in the Gaeltacht, around the language your loved one speaks at home.
Sources: HSE, saolta.ie, blackrockhealth.com, Westdoc, CSO, Galway County Council, TFI Local Link, Citizens Information, Alzheimer Society of Ireland, Family Carers Ireland, galwayhospice.ie. Checked 23 October 2026.
Local support in Galway alongside private care
These services are run separately from UIH, and routes, numbers and meeting days can change, so check with each one directly.
- TFI Local Link Galway runs rural routes such as the 432 from Carraroe to Clifden and the 547 from Portumna to Ballinasloe, and more than 40 door-to-door services booked at least a day ahead. The Free Travel Pass is accepted.
- Citizens Information has centres in Galway city, Tuam, Clifden and Rosmuc.
- Galway County Council's Age Friendly Programme has an Older People's Council, and a Healthy Age Friendly Homes coordinator can assess needs at home and help with grant forms.
- Alzheimer Society of Ireland dementia advisers are free to anyone in Galway City and County. There is dementia-specific day care in Ballinasloe and Clarinbridge, and monthly Alzheimer and memory cafés in places such as Clifden, Carna, Oughterard and Loughrea.
- Family Carers Ireland has an office in Tuam, and its free Careline is 1800 24 07 24.
- Galway Hospice in Renmore runs community palliative care, on referral from a GP or consultant. Local development companies, including Forum Connemara, Comhar na nOileán and Galway Rural Development, run programmes that can include home visits, lunch clubs and help with forms.
Setting up care after a hospital discharge in Galway
Families west of the Corrib know the long road home from University Hospital Galway and Merlin Park University Hospital. Closer to home, Clifden District Hospital takes people for short stays and respite. If your loved one is in any of the three, ring UIH before they leave so we can plan live-in care together and aim to have a primary carer ready for the first day home. Care usually starts within days, sometimes sooner.
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 Galway families choose us
The Twelve Bens and the Maumturks rise west of Lough Corrib, where the nearest neighbour can be a good distance off and a carer who lives in becomes the help on the spot.
If Irish is the language at home in Cois Fharraige or on Inis Mór, tell us early so the care manager can weigh it when choosing your loved one's primary carer and backup.
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 Galway
Is live-in care possible on Inis Mór, Inis Oírr or Inishbofin?
Inis Mór, Inis Oírr and Inishbofin are all in County Galway, one of the 26 counties UIH covers, so island care is something your care manager will plan with you. Live-in care can suit island life because the carer stays on the island with your loved one between changeovers, with no daily crossing. Changeovers between the primary carer and the backup depend on the boat, so the rota, and a plan for days when the weather is bad, are agreed with you before care begins.
My loved one lives alone outside Clifden. How do we know whether live-in care is the right level of help?
Start with the shape of the day. If your loved one manages well and needs a hand at breakfast and bedtime, daytime visits may be enough. If help is needed on and off from morning to night, or the evenings have become lonely or unsafe, live-in care usually works better in that part of Connemara, where visiting carers face long drives between houses. Ring 0818 700 100 and a care manager will go through a typical day with you before recommending anything.
My loved one is most at ease in Irish. Can that be taken into account in Connemara or on the Aran Islands?
Yes, and it is worth raising on the first call. According to the Galway City and County Age Friendly Strategy, 42.1% of people over 55 across Galway said in the 2022 Census that they spoke Irish, the highest share in the State. Asking for it in Carraroe, Rosmuc, Spiddal or Inis Meáin is entirely reasonable. Your care manager will be clear with you about what is possible on language before any care is agreed.
Which hospitals serve people living in County Galway?
University Hospital Galway on Newcastle Road is the main acute hospital and has a 24/7 emergency department. Merlin Park University Hospital on the Old Dublin Road now hosts a number of outpatient clinics that moved from University Hospital Galway, and Portiuncula University Hospital in Ballinasloe has an emergency department, maternity services and critical care. Private hospitals include the Galway Clinic in Doughiska and the Bon Secours Hospital on the Dublin Road. Community units listed in the council's directory include Clifden District Hospital, Áras Mac Dara in Carraroe, Áras Rónáin on Inis Mór, St Brendan's Home in Loughrea and Áras Mhuire in Tuam. UIH can help with care at home after a stay in any of them.
How does UIH differ from HSE home support in Galway?
The HSE Home Support Office for Galway is at Lá Nua in Ballybane, and referrals come through the GP, public health nurse or other HSE staff, or families can apply themselves. UIH is private. You contact us directly, care does not depend on an HSE assessment, and a start is usually possible within days, sometimes sooner. Some families use both, and UIH carers can work in with your loved one's GP and public health nurse. Galway's directory of services for older people notes that tax relief may be claimed on private home support. On UIH care it is available at your marginal rate, up to 40%, using Form HK1.
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 Galway
Live-in Care in nearby counties
Live-in Care in Mayo · Live-in Care in Roscommon · Live-in Care in Offaly · Live-in Care in Tipperary · Live-in Care in Clare
