Mary Butler (Waterford, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Today in the Sacred Heart unit in Dungarvan Community Hospital, 16 beds are closing. Eleven of these beds are for rehab, three are for long-stay and two are for respite. In the programme for Government, the Taoiseach put community care at the heart of the process going forward. Today, we will see 16 beds closed. This is a vital step-down facility in Dungarvan and in west Waterford to help our acute hospitals. This is not going to improve the situation. The reason cited is the lack of nurses, which is at crisis point in this country. I read today that 85% of all nurses training in Ireland this year intend to leave. What is the Taoiseach's Government going to do to change terms and conditions for nurses in this country so that we will not have to close 16 beds in a vital step-down facility in 2017?

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