Jack Wall (Kildare South, Labour)

I thank the Leas-Cheann Comhairle for the opportunity to discuss this very important matter. I raise it because I received letters from the very concerned parents of residents at Clonree House on foot of newspaper reports that the centre there is to close.

To close a centre after a six-month period is a very worrying aspect of this proposal. The families of the loved ones being cared for in this centre, like all families with children suffering from mental illness, see the care and facilities as having a stabilising effect on those seeking such care. The families also understood in this instance that a new rehabilitation group was to be established. However, instead of the good news of advancing the care of their loved ones through the proposed group, the families are being told that the facility is to close for financial reasons. One reason mentioned is that the staffing levels could not be maintained at the centre and because of this, overtime had to be paid on all night-shift work. It is this aspect that is causing the financial problems leading to the threat of closure.

Families also see bonds of friendship develop between all of the residents and this loss of friendship will also affect each of the residents. If the residents are moved to another centre, it will take a great deal of time for them to develop new friendships, acquaint themselves with new surroundings and so on. These difficulties lead to a fear within the person and a further worry for the family concerned.

I need only quote from a letter, sent to the Tánaiste, that I received from a family member with a loved one in the centre, to understand the worry and concern that this uncertainty is causing for the families concerned:

I have now been made aware that this hostel is being closed down for mainly financial reasons. I am one of many families who has someone in the service. To have someone you love develop a psychiatric illness is horrendous. Mostly it is such a slow process that you are not aware it is happening. When you have someone admitted to Lake view unit, the psychiatric section in Naas General Hospital, they usually remain there for a few weeks until they are returned to their families. The effect this has on the family is frightening. The family are left to deal with a stranger with no training and very little support. If every family gave in and left their loved ones in hospital it would cause chaos. We as families need help. This hostel was to be our saving grace we felt. It would be somewhere our loved ones would get the help coping with their illness and maybe families would get the help needed to understand. When someone develops a physiatric illness their personality can change hugely. In a way you end up grieving for the child you lost and have to learn to accept the person they become.

That statement speaks for itself and underlines the threat that the families involved fear at this very moment.

What is going to happen? When will it happen? In what way will it affect their loved ones and in what way will it affect the home? Will any facilities be put in place to assist them with the burden that they have to bear? These very relevant questions must be answered by the HSE before any action is taken in regard to the possible closure of the centre. The families of those involved must be consulted and agreement reached on the means of addressing a problem that has great personal effects for the families involved. It affects them to the point that they are being split down the middle as to what they can further accept.

I ask the Minister that this decision be re-examined and that every effort be made to maintain the centre that the families have come to trust and believe in. I also ask that the proposal on the provision of a rehabilitation group at the centre be considered, as the families believe that this is the way forward for their loved ones.

I will conclude with another quote from the same letter to the Tánaiste:

There is no one fighting solely for the patients or families like me. So for them I ask you to re-think the closure of this centre. I feel you are a straight person and if you can help, you will. I feel so sad because I know what is ahead for anyone who has a loved one enter the service. The only way I can describe it is a life sentence for all of us, patients and families.

I ask that this be brought to the attention of the Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children and that the appropriate action be taken to keep the centre open.

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