Michael Kitt (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Ceann Comhairle for allowing me to raise the issue and I thank the Minister of State for coming to the House to deal with it. I am inquiring about the transfer of 18 residents from Toghermore House to other centres. The Minister of State, Deputy Kathleen Lynch, opened part of the centre at Toghermore House in autumn 2011. It is a very fine facility and there has been great praise for the work that has been done there. Much money has been spent on Toghermore House and it would not take much more to address the fire and safety standards that have been highlighted as a problem.

It would be very harsh to move 18 people from Toghermore House coming up to Christmas with no centres as yet identified for those residents. We need a better response from the HSE on this issue. I understand the engineer's report, which has just come in, refers to fire doors that are urgently needed, and I hope they will be installed. Effectively, there is no need to close Toghermore House if we can address the issue of fire safety. We have been advised that the service and training will continue at Toghermore House. It is an example of decisions being made at short notice with very serious implications for the users of health services in County Galway. In the past year, nursing home centres at Woodford and Oughterard, to name but two, were closed without warning. Indeed the facility at Woodford closed over a weekend. I would like the Minister of State to reconsider this question. If improvements need to be carried out, what does the improvement work entail and how much will it cost? I would like to see a more complete statement from the HSE than the one I saw to date.

I have referred to 18 residents, but there is considerably more activity in the centre. The training places and day places mean that up to 50 or 60 people use the services there. Given the availability of this centre, no rented properties are used in Tuam and these 18 people have rights like everybody else.

I am sure the Minister of State knows the history of Toghermore House. The house was donated to the State by the late former Labour Senator, Bobby Burke, and it is now the headquarters for mental health services in Tuam and Headford. The family of the late Bobby Burke are held in very high regard in the north County Galway area. The facility has proven very cost-effective when compared with the alternative of using rented property. It is also helping to cast away the stigma associated with psychological illnesses by encouraging people to seek treatment and help, just as they would for any other health complaint. The staff have told me having people at Toghermore House has prevented admission to hospital, or where there is admission to hospital it has meant a shorter stay for people in hospital.

The historic Toghermore House is the headquarters for this area and plans are under way to locate other health services there such as speech and language therapy and physiotherapy. The campus might also be used in the future by some local voluntary organisations. Extensive renovation and refurbishment works have been carried out on the main house, while vacant dilapidated warehouses and stores have been transformed into modern clinic rooms, offices and recreational areas. It is a very fine facility and I would not like to see it undermined in any way from the point of view of the residents or the staff. I believe we have a very good centre and I hope the Minister of State can give us some information on the engineer's report. I hope we can assure the people who use the service that the residential centre will continue in operation.

Alex White (Dublin South, Labour)
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I thank Deputy Kitt for raising this issue for discussion today which I am taking on behalf the Minister of State, Deputy Kathleen Lynch.

Tuam mental health services cater for the Tuam and Headford catchment areas with a population of approximately 35,000 and a caseload in excess of 800 individuals. Traditionally the service was provided at St. Brigid's Hospital in east Galway, but gradually over the years, community mental health services in Tuam and Headford have been developed, as the Deputy indicated. Among the services provided by Tuam community mental health services are a day hospital which operates five days per week as a community mental health centre; a day centre which provides a seven-day service for approximately 30 patients; one high-support, three medium-support and five low-support residences, accommodating 40 service users; and Toghermore House, an 18-bed residence providing high support to a mixed service-user group, including elderly, those with a learning disability, those in need of continuing care and respite accommodation.

The HSE makes every effort to ensure the quality and safety of all services delivered to patients and staff by keeping such matters under review. As such, an independent fire and safety report on Toghermore House was undertaken in September last and its final report was submitted to the HSE last week. The report shows that the current facility does not meet the minimum fire safety standards for this type of building, which needs to be addressed immediately.

The HSE has formed a local steering group to assess the challenges outlined in the report with a view to closing the facility as a matter of urgency.

The group consists of a cross-section of senior local mental health services personnel, as well as patient representation. The HSE will also be liaising with the residents and their families as part of the process. The measures on how best to address the fire and safety issues are being discussed at a meeting of the steering group scheduled to take place today to progress the matter in a controlled and safe manner. The steering group is also considering the relocation of the current residents to the most appropriate clinical settings according to their individual needs while the safety issues are addressed.

Toghermore House remains operational during this process but has ceased any new admissions since last Monday. It is also important to stress, however, that all other mental health services in the Toghermore complex to which Deputy Kitt referred and which include the day hospital, the day centre, the training centre workshop, primary care and child and adolescent mental health services will continue to operate as normal. The Minister of State with responsibility for disability, equality and mental health asked that she and the Department be kept informed of developments in respect of Toghermore House arising from the steering group's findings. Obviously, the situation is somewhat fluid but I hope this at least provides some clarification on the issue.

Michael Kitt (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Minister of State for his reply. He concluded his reply by saying that the situation is fluid and I certainly hope so. I understand that report is just in. If it is a question of the fire doors, and fire safety was mentioned by the Minister of State, I hope he would agree with me that it make more economic sense to carry out those necessary repairs and deal with fire safety issues rather than move people who are very used to that area out of Toghermore House to a centre that does not exist in the sense that it is true to say that the HSE would not have places available at short notice for the 18 people involved.

The Minister of State mentioned that new admissions ceased since last Monday. Again, it is disappointing when he talks about Toghermore House remaining operational. We pay rent in many cases in the HSE west area but pay no rent in Tuam because we have an excellent centre donated by the late Senator Bobby Burke which has meant so much to the community of Tuam. The staff told me that this centre prevents admission to hospital, leads to shorter hospital stays and, in particular, removes any stigma of mental illness. If this is true, it is well worth looking at and I hope the Minister of State with responsibility for disability, equality and mental health would take an interest in this. She opened part of that facility a year ago and unveiled a plaque to commemorate the development of a new integrated mental health campus at Toghermore so it would be very disappointing if we now say we cannot continue with the residential centre there. When she visited Toghermore on that day in the autumn of 2011, the Minister of State promoted A Vision for Change, which she has endorsed very strongly, and spoke positively about her commitment to a patient-centred service. I hope the Minister of State gives my views to her and we can hold on to the residential centre for the sake of the 18 people. This is coming up to Christmas and removing these people to another centre will be very harsh. I am sure the Minister of State will agree with me.

Alex White (Dublin South, Labour)
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The Deputy makes the case very well. There is no doubt that it is extremely upsetting for people, particularly at this time of the year, when they are discommoded when an event like this occurs and there is a requirement for them to be moved out of a facility with which they are familiar. If that could be avoided, I am sure it would be. I am sure the Deputy will agree that the HSE and those involved must balance the risk of upsetting and discommoding people against the important requirement to ensure the safety of people where a risk is identified and needs to be assessed and acted upon if it is found to be real. There is a balancing exercise involved.

I cannot say any more than what I have said by way of reply to the Deputy. I was not aware of the background or historical significance of the house and how it had been donated by the former Labour Senator Bobby Burke. I am quite sure the facility is as described by Deputy Kitt and that there is a fine facility with services such as primary care, in which I am very interested and of which I am supportive, as indeed is the Minister of State with responsibility for disability, equality and mental health and the rest of the Government. I will conclude by reiterating that the situation is somewhat fluid. The meeting to which I referred was held today and I am sure the right decision will be made in the circumstances.