Anne Rabbitte (Galway East, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputy for raising this issue and allowing me the opportunity to update the House on the plans to develop a 60-bed residential care centre at St. Patrick's Hospital, Cashel. In early 2016, a capital programme for older persons residential centres was developed in response to the introduction of HIQA's national residential care standards for older people and the requirement that all facilities providing long-stay beds be registered with HIQA. This is a programme to replace, upgrade and refurbish, as appropriate, care facilities at 90 locations. The vast majority of the projects relate to replacement capacity.

I am aware that, as he said in his contribution, the Deputy recently received a response to a parliamentary question stating that the development at St. Patrick's Hospital in Cashel was a new 50-bed community nursing unit. It has since been confirmed with the HSE that this was noted in error. It is, in fact, a 60-bed unit. An amended response was issued to the Deputy earlier today.

The HSE is committed to the development of a new community nursing unit for older persons in Cashel. Provision has been made in the capital programme 2023 to progress a 60-bed community nursing unit for Cashel. In 2019, the HSE engaged a design team to progress a new 60-bed community nursing unit project on the site of St. Patrick's Hospital, Cashel. The emergence of the Covid pandemic in March 2020 interrupted works on this project. As a response to Covid-19 risks, upgrade works were carried out to make facilities located on the campus of the nearby Our Lady's Hospital, Cashel, which is now named Cashel Residential Older Persons Services, suitable for long-stay residential use. Residents from St. Patrick's Hospital were moved to facilities on the campus of Our Lady's Hospital in June 2020. The HSE recognises that the move to the campus of Our Lady's Hospital was an interim solution due to a critical need caused by the pandemic. An assessment and rehabilitation unit and a day hospital for older persons services continue to operate at St. Patrick's Hospital.

Specialist renovation works have been carried out on some of the vacated space at St. Patrick's Hospital for the development of new facilities for the children's disability network team for Cashel, Tipperary and surrounding areas. This will also accommodate children's disability services originally based at Our Lady's Hospital. Other available space at St. Patrick's Hospital is being considered for the development of facilities for the HSE roll-out of the enhanced community care programme.

Site options for the new 60-bed unit for Cashel are under consideration. These options include building on the existing site and building on a new site. The HSE has engaged a design team to progress the new 60-bed community nursing unit for Cashel. Stage 1 design has been completed and is under review. HIQA registers all community nursing units for a three-year period. Six months prior to its registration expiring, a community nursing unit is obliged to submit an application to re-register the unit. Cashel Residential Older Persons Services have commenced this process with HIQA in order to ensure registration for another three years from June 2023.

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