Richard O'Donoghue (Limerick County, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I too sympathise with the families who have lost loved ones throughout the pandemic. What were the problems and what can we learn from the situation? I have seen nursing homes that lost 37 staff during the pandemic in a two-month timeframe because they were poached by the HSE. When the HSE offered positions, including through agencies, it almost crippled nursing homes that had been providing good care. It took 37 staff from one nursing home. The nursing home then had an issue down the line with providing adequate staff during Covid. There are questions to be answered in that regard.

Nursing homes in Limerick have gone above and beyond the duty of care for the people who lived in them. In one case, where a husband and wife were both in a nursing home, their children could not get see their mother because she was upstairs, but they could see their father through a window. When their father died, their mother could not get to see her husband.

Untold damage has been done due to a policy not being put in place, not only in nursing homes but also for those who brought children into the world, to ensure visitation rights for people. There will be a knock-on effect from that in years to come. We must ensure that this never happens again, no matter what arises. Families must be able to see their loved ones and family members no matter what the circumstances. Precautions must be taken for the protection of all. The HSE has a big question to answer in this regard as well.

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