Keith Swanick (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I have asked the Minister of State here today to discuss the planned closure of the Rosalie unit in my home town of Castlerea, County Roscommon. A public meeting about the threatened closure of this health facility took place on 8 February. To say that family members of the residents are upset would be an understatement. The unit was previously threatened with closure in 2015 but, following public protests, this plan was reversed. The protests were organised by angry family members who then numbered more than they do now. The cynic in me would suggest that the embargo placed on new admissions since September 2016 was introduced in an effort to minimise the voice of protests which would come once the closure was announced. In an interview last week, Tony Canavan said that the reason this is arising as an issue is that the numbers in the unit have drifted down to a low level and that is because there has not been any new admissions to the Rosalie unit since September 2016. There could not be any new admissions because there was an embargo on admissions. When pressed on the fact that this was because an embargo had been placed on new residents, Mr. Canavan disagreed with the use of the word "embargo". That is, however, what we must call it. It is an absolute disgrace.

The unit at Áras Naomh Chaolain is currently home to 14 elderly high-dependency residents with mental health conditions including advanced Alzheimer’s. It was developed as a specialised psycho-geriatric unit with capacity for 25 people. It is not the same as a general nursing home. I am very familiar with it. I grew up 300 yd .or 400 yd. down the road from it. I am very familiar with the area and my cousin works in the unit.

Fears that the centre would be closed were allayed in July 2015 when then Minister of State at the Department of Health, Kathleen Lynch, told a deputation from Roscommon there were “no plans to close it and there will be no such plans.” For the families of the residents, this offered some relief. That has now been shattered. These patients and their families have been told by the HSE that there is adequate accommodation available in Ballinasloe, County Galway, and Castlebar, County Mayo. I am not sure if the Minister of State is familiar with the hinterland around there but it is an hour's journey from Castlerea to Castlebar or an hour and a half on the train. There is no main direct route to Ballinasloe from Castlerea. There is a road but it is terrible. There is no direct rail link or bus route. It would take at least an hour and a half for families to visit their loved ones in such units. These sorts of excuses are totally unacceptable. Uprooting these people, changing their routines and putting them in new settings different from those they are used to is an absolute disgrace. This unit is their home. I totally disagree with this move. I fell very passionately about it. We in Ireland pride ourselves on having an innate sense of nature. This is not nature. It is terrible. It would not happen in the Minister of State's own home town. This is a political decision and it can be reversed. I urge the Minister of State to deal with it as a priority.