Martin Browne (Tipperary, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

St. Brigid's Hospital had three palliative care, two respite and 11 convalescent beds. How many beds are now in place in Tipperary to replace those taken from St. Brigid's? Ms Susan Mullins appeared before the committee in July. Since that time, things have become a lot worse in her view regarding the provision of healthcare, especially in respect of care at the step-down facilities. She made the point that people who do not have a spouse or a child would like stay in their community rather than go elsewhere. The lack of public transport and the capacity problems being experienced by private nursing homes, along with higher costs, have resulted in closures. At the end of March, more than 6,400 people were on the waiting list for new additional home support care. Considering all of this, are the witnesses fully convinced that the HSE is actually in a position to close down facilities? As all the reports say, and the Government keeps telling us, we have an ageing population. Despite this, we are closing down the likes of St. Brigid's Hospital and the Owenacurra centre and forcing people into private nursing homes.