Pat Buckley (Cork East, Sinn Fein)
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I thank the Minister of State for his ten minutes this morning. This is black and white. What I want to raise probably goes back to late June of last year with the closure of the Owenacurra health centre in Midleton and the short-term and long-term respite beds.

I want to raise the fact that even when that centre was open pre-Covid and we had the short-term beds, on average, approximately 208 people per year used those two separate beds. That obviously closed with Covid-19. Since we have come out of the pandemic, however, there is actually a waiting list. There was an additional waiting list of 26 people looking for those services on those two short-term respite beds. Obviously, the centre is not taking in any more patients nor is it taking any short-term respite patients.

The big issue here, of which I am sure the Minister of State is well aware, is that the HSE has repeatedly been spinning news that buildings are not fit for purpose.

It says there are only so many residents in the centre and that, once they have gone, it will not be needed. From my research and work, even in recent weeks, I can see we are going to lose the service for the 200-plus people a year on the short-term respite alone and the services that come with that, such as blood tests, chiropody and dental services. They are all going to go.

I appeal to the Government and the Minister of State to instruct the HSE to revisit the Owenacurra centre. I had been informed about this issue yesterday morning, but in the evening I received a phone call from a person who had needed that service last Saturday. When I spoke to that person, it made me both angry and sad. They had driven their car to the Owenacurra centre last Saturday night and approached the centre. It is up and running for the 11 residents who are there at the moment but, unfortunately, the centre could not assist the person, who told me they ended up sleeping in their car. They were awoken by a young garda at 7 o'clock on the Sunday morning. They went on to tell me they were experiencing so much anxiety that they got sick into a bag and put the bag into the boot of the car. That is only one incident and, in fairness to the individual, they had the bravery to ring me and tell me I could relay their story because they needed the help. Families have been affected since this issue broke in late June. There are now families who have family members in that centre who are not talking any more, whether because of misinformation, coercion or whatever. Residents have been told another centre is better, even though the family know it is not, and things break down.

Having spoken to staff at the centre, I know families are still ringing them and crying down the phone, asking whether they can get one of their family members into the centre. The centre covers a population of roughly 94,000 people in east Cork. I accept the HSE has indicated people can go to other centres, but the other centres are in Skibbereen, Kanturk or Sarsfield Court. I visited Sarsfield Court with the HSE four weeks ago. Its compliance test received a lower score than the Owenacurra centre, and that was only four weeks ago. The Owenacurra centre might not be fit for purpose, but the services have to remain in east Cork and the town of Midleton. I appeal, therefore, to the Minister of State to ask the Minister of State, Deputy Butler, and the Government to revisit the Owenacurra centre and to keep the services in Midleton.

Anne Rabbitte (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Deputy. The matter he submitted in writing related to the lack of short-term and long-term respite services in east Cork but, regrettably, my prepared response focuses entirely on disability services.

Pat Buckley (Cork East, Sinn Fein)
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The Minister of State is correct. My question related to respite.

Anne Rabbitte (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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The Deputy's question related specifically to the Owenacurra centre. It would show my ignorance if I did not understand what the Owenacurra centre is. I do understand what it is; it provides respite in respect of mental health supports. My prepared contribution relates to a totally different matter, so it would be disrespectful of me not to acknowledge the Deputy's questions about the Owenacurra site. I understand it exactly and everything he has raised. I do not have a prepared answer to hand, but I will take on board what he said and I will discuss it with the Minister of State, Deputy Butler. I appreciate the local Deputies have engaged with that Minister of State, but I will convey to her what the Deputy raised. Nevertheless, I will outline my prepared answer on disability services.

I am deeply committed to the provision of respite. I have seen at first hand the benefit respite can provide to people with disabilities and their families, so I thank the Deputy for raising the important issue of respite. This year, I have allocated funding to provide an additional ten respite homes, including three additional specialist centre-based services to provide 4,032 nights to 90 children, that is, one to be Prader-Willi appropriate and the other two to provide high-support respite for children and young adults with complex support needs. Sometimes, when we say I support the “development” of something, that just means we are getting the process going, and when we talk about services being provided for 90 children, that could mean four children over seven nights. It is about growing and creating that capacity.

Regarding east Cork, the Cork-Kerry community healthcare organisation, CHO, provides funding to the Cope Foundation to provide adult respite services within the east Cork area. At present, a four-bedroom respite service is operational in Fermoy and a six-bedroom respite service in Cobh is currently not in operation, unfortunately, due to staffing and recruitment issues. That is very regrettable and puts a significant strain on families. Regrettably, due to the Covid crisis, respite services throughout Cork and Kerry were severely impacted and resulted in some services ceasing operations completely or being offered in an alternative way. Cork-Kerry disability services have informed me they have actively engaged with service providers to plan for the phased resumption of services and the development of alternative models. Cork-Kerry community healthcare disability services have advised they will implement a standardised process for the management of adult respite services. The standardisation is something I discussed with the CHO when I visited Cork last summer, whereby one person might get 40 hours while someone else might get only one hour. There has to be a proper tool whereby what you get will not depend on whom you know. A person's needs have to be the basis.

More broadly within the county of Cork, a new respite service for adults is being developed by the Brothers of Charity. I have been informed the building upgrade is now complete and the service is scheduled to open in quarter 2 of 2022 in Garretstown. While it is an existing building, the four or five rooms within it will create new capacity in the area. I have been informed that 10,649 respite overnights were provided in CHO 4, which exceeded the national service plan target by about 1,000 bed nights, while 1,467 day-only respite services days were also provided. That was lower than the target, but not significantly so. The HSE has advised that where targets were not met, this was mainly due to necessary precautions to maintain physical distancing. The need for increased respite facilities for people with disabilities is now well understood, and the Department of Health and the HSE continue to work with me to explore various ways of responding to this need.

Catherine Connolly (Galway West, Independent)
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I thank the Minister of State.

Pat Buckley (Cork East, Sinn Fein)
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I thank the Minister of State. As I said, this matter was not intended as a trick question but rather was intended to highlight the lack of respite care and the difficulties for all sectors in east Cork. I welcome the fact the Minister of State mentioned the Cope Foundation and the services it provides, which are only down the road from me. In some ways, it is like the council waiting lists for housing, whereby someone might have been approved for a four-bedroom house and be excited and delighted but there may not be any four-bedroom houses available. As for the services in Cobh, the issue is one of staffing, which is insufficient. I raised the question in the first instance because this is about the knock-on effect of that. Some people are capable and willing to travel to other towns in the area to try to get these services, whether in disability or mental health, but we need all these services to work together and complement one another. If services are splintered, that will not work. If we lose the Owenacurra centre and all the services there, where will those people go? The social impact of the demand on families in Mallow, Fermoy, Cobh and possibly even as far down as Kanturk - God forbid if they had to travel to Skibbereen - who are not able to drive puts greater strain on those families. Moreover, the public transport is poor.

I reiterate my request. I do not want to beg, because we should not have to beg in this House, but I have worked with and met these families. There were more suicides at the weekend in our town, and a HSE entity is saying we do not need mental health services or respite services in the town. The model of consistency and excellence in this centre, which is totally integrated within the town and local services, should be replicated throughout the country, yet the HSE wants to close it. I appeal to the Minister of State to urge the Minister of State, Deputy Butler, and the wider Government to rethink the closure of the Owenacurra centre and to save the services.

Anne Rabbitte (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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I certainly will. As Minister of State with responsibility for mental health respite, this is one of Deputy Butler's priorities, so I will certainly convey the Deputy's points to her. Respite is also a priority for me within disability services.

For me to stand here and tell the Deputy I know of a house that is closed because we cannot staff it is extraordinary. We have to question why we cannot staff it. I know there are shortages everywhere else but sometimes we have to look at the wages and what we we pay people who work in these services. We also need to move away completely from the medical model and towards a more social model. The team does not always need to be medically-led. A social care worker with good staff can also deliver and support the respite piece. Cork is a huge challenge for me, especially with regard to respite and residential care. That is why I will be going away today and discussing this house that is closed. I know it is run by the Cope Foundation but I have to wonder why a house would be closed when I have funding to deliver that service. At the same time, when I get agencies in they are able to recruit staff and service the sites for me, which is why I was able to deliver the ten houses I delivered last year. I have to wonder about the management of funding and why that cannot be done nationwide.

Catherine Connolly (Galway West, Independent)
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We are a little ahead of time so I will suspend for a few minutes.