Denis Naughten (Roscommon-South Leitrim, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister for his response. At the outset the Minister referred to the issue of patient-centredness. We are all keen to see that. At the moment there is a serious question mark over the Rosalie unit in Castlerea, which provides psychiatry of later life. This has been in the media for the past six to eight weeks. Yet there has been no contact or communication with the families of the individuals in that unit or the staff who operate that unit. Despite this, we are told that the HSE is working with the individuals in the unit and their families to develop care plans for them. That is the evident lack of patient-centredness as we speak in the Galway Roscommon service.

There have been assaults in Galway and in Roscommon. Moreover, there have been assaults not only of staff but of vulnerable patients in some of these units as well. I have raised a particular issue with the Minister. I want the matter independently investigated and I want answers to the questions that I have raised in the House. I also want clarity from the HSE on what exactly is happening at the unit in Áras Naomh Caolinn and in the Rosalie unit in particular. The patients and families deserve answers on the plans for these units, but the HSE is operating under a cloak of darkness and then shutting down the service unannounced overnight.

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