Victor Boyhan (Independent)
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I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Butler.

Paddy Burke (Fine Gael)
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I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Butler, to the House. I raise this issue in regard to the provision of respite beds at the Sacred Heart Hospital, Castlebar. As the Minister of State will know, the Sacred Heart Hospital, Castlebar, was renovated in the past ten years. St. Joseph's ward, where the respite beds are, was renovated during the Covid-19 pandemic. There is a respite bed and a rehabilitation bed in St. Joseph's Ward. Prior to Covid-19, there were two respite beds at the Sacred Heart Hospital in St. Joseph's ward.

There is plenty of room in the ward for many extra beds. In our district hospital in Swinford, which is 16 or 17 miles away, there are nine respite beds. We are all aware that Castlebar is one of the largest towns in Connacht, but there is not great public transport between Castlebar and Swinford. One bed is not adequate for the requirements of the large population in the large hinterland around the country town of Castlebar.I urge the Minister of State to look into this matter very seriously. I hope she will have some good news for me. There is a lot of agitation locally for the provision of an extra bed or an extra two or three beds because the space is there and it can be done quite cheaply.

We all know the work carers do. I have seen it at first hand. My mother lived to a great age; she lived at home until she was in her 96th year. We could not have looked after her had it not been for the carers. There are so many families like that now. They are saving the State so much money by looking after people at home. Some family members who are looking after a loved one will require respite. The biggest problem is the inadequate number of beds. Cancellations also cause hardship.

A pensioner who is acting as a carer only gets a half-rate carer's allowance, which is not very fair. The only thing that changes between being 65 years of age yesterday and 66 years of age today is that a person loses half the carer's allowance. I ask the Minister of State and the Government to look at this. We had an unsuccessful referendum earlier this year. Here, we have a situation in which people who are caring for loved ones in a full-time capacity and who reach pension age only get a half-rate carer's allowance. They paid for their pension. This is most unfair to those people. I hope the Minister of State has some good news for us today and she will bring back to the Government the issue of the half-rate carer's allowance for people who have paid for their pensions and are now in a position to draw down their pensions.

The provision of an extra bed or two at the Sacred Heart Hospital in Castlebar is badly needed to serve the local needs of a big, populated area in the hinterland of Castlebar.

Victor Boyhan (Independent)
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I thank the Senator. He covered more than the Commencement Matter he raised but it was particularly interesting.

Paddy Burke (Fine Gael)
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It is all related.

Mary Butler (Waterford, Fianna Fail)
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I thank Senator Burke for raising this important matter. I acknowledge the vital healthcare role Sacred Heart Hospital plays and the excellent level of care and support it provides to residents and their families in the Castlebar community and surrounding areas.

The Sacred Heart Hospital in Castlebar is registered with HIQA for the provision of 74 long-term beds. The hospital also has 26 rehabilitation beds. These beds offer an extremely important service as we seek to maximise the functional capacity of older people so that they can return home following a stay in an acute hospital. Sacred Heart Hospital also provides a respite bed to allow family carers in the community a welcome break. This bed is currently occupied. This bed offers additional assistance to families and carers in Castlebar to help alleviate the ongoing stress associated with providing care.

The are currently a total of 37 respite beds in HSE Community Healthcare West, of which 14 are available in County Mayo. I advise the Senator that increasing the respite bed numbers in Sacred Heart Hospital would require a reduction in the number of long-stay or rehabilitation beds in the facility. Unfortunately, the HSE has advised that this is not currently an option as the demand for these other beds, that is, the long-stay beds and the rehabilitation beds, is too high. The HSE has assured me that if any emergency respite applications are made in Castlebar, every effort will be made to accommodate the person in either the Sacred Heart Hospital or the closest available bed in the county. The HSE will also review the provision of respite beds in County Mayo with a view to exploring the option of providing an additional respite bed in Westport, which is the closest location to Castlebar.

As for other query the Senator raised, which is a matter for the Minister for Social Protection, Deputy Humphreys, as the Acting Chairperson said, my understanding is that this has come up several times previously. Anyone in receipt of a State payment cannot receive two full State payments.It is my understanding the people will get half the carer's allowance if they are drawing down the contributory or non-contributory pensions. I compliment the Minister, Deputy Humphreys, on the work she has done recently in relation to carers and making sure they are eligible for their own pensions. I know the Senator welcomes that and it is really important.

Regarding the Sacred Heart Hospital in Castlebar, bed management comes under the remit of the HSE. There are 74 long-term-care beds. These would be for people on the fair deal scheme. The hospital also has 26 rehabilitation beds. These are very important for people who leave an acute hospital setting and who need rehabilitation before they are able to go back to their communities. The hospital also has one carer's bed specifically for carers. I have been told there is not currently an option to reduce the number of long-stay beds to put in a second respite bed. However, I welcome the fact the provision of respite beds is being reviewed in County Mayo at the moment.

Paddy Burke (Fine Gael)
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I thank the Minister of State for her response but I do not think it will go down that well with the population in Castlebar. It seems the HSE will provide a bed anywhere except in Castlebar, which is the county town and which has a huge hinterland and a big population. All the routes lead in to Castlebar. It is much easier for people to visit a relative or a loved one in Castlebar. To be quite honest, I am very disappointed with the response. I had hoped the Minister of State would have had some good news but there is no good news here. An extra respite bed may be provided in Westport, which is nearly ten miles away and not much further than Swinford. I and the people would not mind other than there is space at the Sacred Heart Hospital in Castlebar. There were two respite beds there before Covid. I cannot see why the HSE would not make a second bed available there. This will be greeted with great disappointment in the locality.

Mary Butler (Waterford, Fianna Fail)
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It is important to put it into context. Bed management is extremely important. Even though the Senator said there is room for another bed, to do so, there also needs to be the nursing staff and health and social care workers to provide that support. Currently, there are 74 long-term beds in the hospital, the majority of which I assume are under the fair deal scheme. That is to support older people to be able to age in a community nursing hospital when they can no longer be cared for at home. The Senator is possibly missing the point that the hospital also has 26 rehabilitation beds. He said the hospital had one rehabilitation bed but in fact it has 26. These are really important for people who have had a stay in an acute hospital and now need rehabilitation, perhaps after a stroke or a hip operation, to be well enough then to go back into their communities.

The Sacred Heart Hospital provides a respite bed to give family carers in the community a welcome break. This bed is currently occupied. The bed offers additional assistance to family and carers. The HSE has also said that if any emergency respite care applications are made in Castlebar, every effort is made to accommodate the person, in either the Sacred Heart Hospital or the closest available bed in the county.

I understand what the Senator said about people not wanting to travel, but at the same time, if a choice has to be made between closing a long-stay bed to have a respite bed, I would prefer to keep the long-stay bed. However, I will bring what the Senator has said to the head of older persons' services in the area, Des Mulligan, whom I speak to weekly, to see if anything further can be done.