Maire Devine (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister of State. I am delighted, as is everyone in the health service, that the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services, CAMHS, beds have been reopened in Ballyfermot. It is a good news story and I am delighted that it has happened.

I refer to converting the agency staff to permanent posts. In regard to the design of buildings, we have had these problems before. The design needs to be led by service users, including the staff and patients, saying how they want their building to look. That needs to be done in all establishments in all parts of the health service.

We are again going to throw vulnerable patients out onto the street with no community services. Will the diagnosis and a risk assessment be done? We are downgrading the beds but nothing is replacing the service in the community, so we are just throwing them to the wolves. Will the Minister of State get in touch with the general secretary of the PNA, Mr. Peter Hughes, who has solutions to this and prevent the industrial action which nurses are unfortunately forced to take because of the loss of services to our patients?