Funding overspend may leave some Donegal Community Hospitals in jeopardy - claims TD

A "massive overspend" within the HSE and the Government's budgets for nursing units and community hospitals could potentially have disastrous consequences for Donegal nursing units and community hospitals within the county a local TD has claimed. 

Deputy Pat the Cope Gallagher has questioned if the current HSE/Department of Health capital plan for upgrading of State owned Nursing homes, Care Units, Community Hospitals and for the construction of the proposed Public Private Partnership (PPP) Community Hospitals are safeguarded or are they in jeopardy due to the massive overspend in the capital plan of the Department of Health. 

His comments come following this weekend’s confirmation that the existing Capital Plan for Nursing Homes is some €300 million over budget.

Linking that overspend and additional commitments given to add Community Hospitals such as St Joseph’s Community Hospital, Stranorlar, Lifford and Ramelton Community Hospital to the existing Capital Plan 2016 to 2021, has prompted Deputy Gallagher to state that "serious questions" must now be answered by the Government.

"I am cognisant of the numerous answers to my  different Dáil questions regarding the long-term futures of residential care units in the three Donegal community hospitals , when time and time again, no commitment was given on the record of the Dáil," added Deputy Gallagher.

He said: "The entire Government Nursing Home Strategy and Care of the Older Person is now in tatters, with broken promises, false announcement of funding by various Government Ministers, while at the same time their own budgets are burst.

"It is now becoming clearer that the entire strategy is grossly underfunded, and not alone can existing commitments not be met but other commitments granted to add other community hospitals to the programme are now in serious trouble." 

He said: "It was with great shock that we discovered in January 2016, that the then Government proposed to downgrade St Joseph’s Hospital, Lifford and Ramelton Community Hospitals by removing certain services and the capacity for long stay accommodation, residential care and the dementia care unit from these respective Community Hospital." 

"The real risk on the horizon for our community hospitals is the impending deadline of the derogated guidelines of HIQA, which means that all state run community hospitals and care units must reach the full standards of HIQA by 2021, this runs concurrently with the existing capital plan of the HSE for community hospitals, which we now discover is grossly underfunded with massive overspends.

"If community hospitals or nursing units cannot meet the full HIQA standards by 2021, then actions could be taken by HIQA to remove certain services and close residential care units," added Deputy Gallagher.

Attacking Jim Daly Minister of State at the Department of Health, he said Minister Daly "is either in a state of denial or confusion, for as last month he visited Donegal making further promises in terms of our community hospitals, while knowing full well his budget was blown." 

Deputy Gallagher accused Minister Daly of attempting to claim the overspend is due to inflation.  "The figures simply do not stack up, this is another National Children’s Hospital scenario all over again, budgets being blown due to lack of governance The communities within Donegal deserve to know the full facts and the truth surrounding our Community Hospitals and Nursing Units. For far too long we have been taken for a ride on the Government spin machine, we now deserve the truth surrounding what exactly is planned for all of our community hospitals currently operating within the county," Deputy Gallagher added.