Mary Butler (Waterford, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

The Deputy is quite right; day care centres are very important. A focus I have had since September last has been on trying to get as many day care centres open as possible, and I have an update for him.

It is a key priority for me to allow more people to engage in services that allow them to remain independent and live in their own homes with dignity. The HSE has operational responsibility for planning, managing and delivering health, personal and social services, including day care centres. These services are fundamental to the health and well-being of our older population. Access to these centres can play a key role in enabling older people to live independently in their communities, as the Deputy noted. They provide invaluable support, advice and social interaction for older people, who may be experiencing isolation and loneliness for any number of reasons.

It remains my priority to ensure day care centres reopen as quickly and safely as possible following the necessary closures in 2020 in response to Covid-19. The process for reopening day care centres commenced in 2021 and the HSE continues to work actively on the reopening for older people as a priority. At the end of December, 237 centres for older people, or 73% of the total, had reopened and it is planned that a further 66 will open in 2022.

As the Deputy pointed out, Abbeyleix day care service has been closed since March 2020 due to Covid-19. Older person services in Laois are working closely with HSE estates to identify alternative suitable accommodation for the service to resume. The Deputy will be aware renovation works are under way to improve the residential services at the hospital. To facilitate work, these services were relocated to the part of the building where day services had previously been provided. These works, which were required from the perspective of infection prevention and control, public health and HIQA in light of the pandemic, are expected to be completed by quarter 1 of 2022. On completion, the residential service will be transferred to its original location on the ground floor. Portlaoise hospital proposes to have 18 intermediate care beds available as part its winter planning once this part of the building has been vacated by older person services. This is the area of the hospital where the day service was based.

As an interim solution, people who attended the day service in Abbeyleix hospital will be offered a place in line with infection prevention and control and public health advice at the day service on the Timahoe Road when it reopens following necessary renovation works. These renovations are also expected to be completed in quarter 1 of 2022. The HSE has confirmed to the Department that it is actively sourcing an alternative suitable building to provide a day service in Abbeyleix and the environs of Mountrath and Timahoe. The suitability of the options put forward will be considered by older person services as an alternative day service location for the people who previously attended Abbeyleix hospital. This is currently at the early stages of planning. The HSE has reassured the Department that the staff of the community nursing unit continue to liaise with people who previously attended the service on an ongoing basis.

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