More than 3,000 signatures have been collected in the city as part of the campaign to prevent the closure of St Francis public nursing home in Newcastle.
The HSE West decided last year that the 33-year-old centre will shut its doors as a residential facility and only operate as a daycare centre in the future.
The organiser of the petition former city mayor and vice chairperson of the HSE West’s regional health forum Cllr Catherine Connolly aims to collect 10,000 signatures within the next month.
She is appealing to people to “stand up and be counted” and show solidarity with the residents and their families.
She says the local health authority plans to move the current residents to private nursing homes when the number reaches a critical level, below 15, she believes.
Councillor Connolly says the response to the petition to save the home has been “extremely positive” so far.
“The campaign to save St Francis Home is gaining momentum, we have collected over 3,000 signatures in just two weeks. The feedback is overwhelming with most people saying they simply cannot understand why the HSE West would close such a wonderful facility.
“The campaign will continue on Shop Street this Saturday between 11am and 3pm and supporters will also extend the campaign to the churches beginning with the Sacred Heart Church in the Westside after Saturday evening’s and Sunday’s Masses.”
Councillor Connolly claimed one private healthcare company which has financial difficulties highlights in a “most acute and real way” the importance of having public nursing homes.
“The Mowlam Healthcare Company operates 16 nursing homes throughout the country and the recent significant financial problems experienced by this private company has put the care of over 1,000 elderly residents at risk.
“It is crystal clear that at the end of the day a private company operates for profit and if it is not making profit then provision of nursing home care becomes a secondary issue.”
She said the HSE West and the Minister for Health must commit to the provision of public nursing home care and to keeping St Francis open.
“In addition to the local councillors and the councillors on the health forum, Noel Grealish TD has written a letter confirming he supports the campaign and Eamon O’Cuiv has confirmed publicly on Raidio naGaeltachta that he also supports it. I am still awaiting confirmation from the other TDs in Galway city.”
She insists the proposed closure of the home is clearly against the wishes of the city’s councillors.
“All of them have publicly expressed their support for this facility and indeed they passed a motion unanimously on Monday May 16 calling on the HSE West to reverse its decision and calling on the local TDs and in particular the Government TDs to take whatever steps are necessary at Government and Department of Health level to keep the home open. In addition 40 councillors on the Regional Health Forum and three TDs in Galway West - two of whom are part of the Government - gave their unanimous support to the campaign to keep it open.
“Moreover following an unannounced inspection of the facilities in September 2009, HIQA [the HSE regulator] gave it a glowing report apart from highlighting difficulties with a lack of en suite facilities.”
Cllr Connolly says Galway’s public representatives must now go a “step further” and she is appealing to all the local TDs and city councillors to sign the petition to keep St Francis Home open.
“St Francis is the only public nursing home on the west side of the city and indeed the only public nursing home in the city outside of specialised units in Merlin Park. If we allow this facility to close then the writing is clearly on the wall for all remaining public nursing homes in Galway.”
