Maria Byrne (Fine Gael)

I thank the Minister of State for coming to discuss this all-important issue. I am glad he acknowledged the fact that what we all saw on the RTÉ programme across two nursing homes was not reflective of all nursing homes. That is a really important message. When we think about the residents, the people who work there, their families and the greater community that watched that programme, it is horrific. It was frightening that people were so neglected. I am glad to hear from the Minister of State that the Government has taken steps, along with HIQA, to address those issues and ensure that this will not happen again. There are thousands of staff right across Ireland who dedicate themselves to the care of older people.

Here in Ireland, we are all living longer. Who is to say that any of us might not end up in a nursing home down the road? So much good work is going on but to then see the neglect on the other side was harrowing, especially for the families of the residents. We have to move to a model where we show that there is better quality of life for people, people are well-looked after and they can have trust in the level of care they are receiving. Whether it is a private or a public nursing home, it does not make a difference.

I know the Government is committed to more public nursing homes but the queues for the public nursing homes are unbelievable. As he is, the same as myself, from Limerick, the Minister of State will know that the number of people every week who send representations to get into St. Camillus’ community nursing unit and other public nursing homes is unbelievable. There are obviously not enough beds in the public system, so without the private healthcare system, we would be really stuck in terms of long-term care for our people. Private nursing homes are the backbone of healthcare in Ireland. Without them, access to care would be significantly reduced. We have to be very grateful that we have a balance of both. Sometimes, people say nursing homes are out to make a profit but we have to work with both systems and ensure there is a level playing field across them so that people have access to a nursing home and are treated the same regardless of whether they are in the public or private system.

Recently, I was speaking to a family who were looking for a nursing home in the Limerick area. There are waiting lists for all the nursing homes. This just shows that nursing home beds are crucial. Since 2018, 77 nursing homes have closed down across Ireland. That was up to the end of 2024. I am not sure if any have closed in 2025. This represents a loss of 2,800 beds. It is a huge difference and has led to there being waiting lists.

I have had engagement with Nursing Homes Ireland, which represents the different nursing homes around the country. I am not here to advocate for it but I believe it does a very good job in representing the nursing homes. It held a round-table discussion in February and the key recommendation was that a rights-based, resident-led nursing home policy, fully embedded in the continuum of older persons' care, was essential to safeguarding quality, dignity and long-term sustainability. It was recommended that residents should have equal access to primary care therapies and diagnostics regardless of where they lived. If we take the private versus the public, private is across all areas of health. It is in pharmacies, primary care and GP practices. That balance is quite good and will be needed for sustaining nursing home care into the future.

The Minister of State mentioned how the Government was committed to working with the different organisations to provide not only that high-quality level of care but a good quality of life as well. One thing that should be looked at relates to the Department of education or that whole side. Many of the nursing homes run classes, be they art classes or different group therapies, and they should possibly be able to access funding from the Department for the provision of a tutor.