The leader of an action group set up to save St Francis Nursing Home from closure is urging the HSE West to use the facility to relieve the pressure on the overburdened University Hospital Galway.
Cllr Catherine Connolly says the “ongoing crisis” regarding patients on trolleys at the regional hospital - there were more than 50 people awaiting beds on two separate nights last week - confirms the “absolute necessity” of keeping the 35-year-old Upper Newcastle public nursing home open.
The HSE West announced in 2010 that it intends to close it as a residential centre, operating it instead as a daycare facility. The decision was taken following an inspection by the HSE regulator HIQA which made several recommendations to enable it to meet new nursing home standards.
The HSE said at the time that complying with this request would mean major and costly changes and would reduce the capacity of the unit significantly.
“Figures from the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation last week confirmed that the number of patients on trolleys at UHG [on one night] reached near record levels with 55 patients on trolleys - that is 28 in the emergency department, 16 in wards and 11 in the medical assessment unit,” says the city councillor and former vice chairperson of the HSE West’s regional health forum.
“In addition we also know that any given time there are over 40 patients in acute beds who have been assessed as in need of nursing home care. With this background it makes no sense on any level to close St Francis’.”
She states the nursing home has served the people of Galway since 1976 and received a “glowing report” from the HIQA inspectors about its standard of care and food.
“They only expressed concerns in relation to adequacy of staff levels and lack of en suite facilities. The primary problem identified by the HSE West itself is the moratorium on the recruitment of staff as opposed to the refurbishment of the building.
“Indeed the Minister for Health when he met the Save St Francis Home delegation last December confirmed that the estimated refurbishment costs of approximately €200,000 would not be a major obstacle.”
She believes that even with the existing staff complement the home could accommodate more residents than the 19 people currently living there.
“It is time that sense prevailed in this matter and a decision is made to keep the nursing home open and to use it appropriately to relieve the pressure on UHG.”
Councillor Connolly says she has written to the HSE West on behalf of the Save St Francis Home action group - who collected more than 25,000 signatures last year calling on the HSE and the Minister for Health to keep the unit open - with a view to following up on the meeting with the Minister last December.
She has also written to the local Labour councillors and TD appealing to them to take a public stance and put pressure not just on the Fine Gael Minister for Health Dr James Reilly but also on the Labour junior ministers, Roisin Shortall and Kathleen Lynch.
The former mayor said it would be “unpardonable” that the only public nursing home in the city would close under not only Labour’s watch but at a time when the party’sw representation in Galway city is at an all time high.
“It is time for them to show leadership and indeed follow the example of the Labour senator in Laois who is one of the local representatives who has spearheaded the campaign to save the Abbeyleix Nursing Home with positive results to date.”
