Ms Magdalen Rogers:

I thank the Deputy for raising the issue. It comes back to my earlier points on the lack of momentum in implementing the neuro-rehabilitation strategy. Nature abhors a vacuum and the development in Cork is a clear response albeit from the private sector to a very clear need.

For the past 20 years or more elected representatives have voiced the need to create neuro-rehabilitation services to serve the population of the south. The strategy is not up and running, and it is not being implemented. For over a year there were no meetings on strategy. Work to see how the proposed development fits in is not happening or else we have not been involved in it. There is always a space to fill a need. Our concern is that even if the facility is made available to public patients, and beds are made available to public patients within the facility, there is still a huge dearth of community neuro-rehabilitation services in the south. Even if the private unit that has been mentioned could be made available as part of the landscape of neuro-rehabilitation services in Ireland there is still a huge gap in community neuro-rehabilitation services. That points to a need for a joined-up and effective neuro-rehabilitation strategy.