asked the Minister for Health if he will consider changing the site of Sligo County Home as the present County Home is a very old building which was erected by the British Government and is at present in very bad condition, and as the site is surrounded by rivers and flooded lands.
Ceisteanna — Questions Oral Answers. - Sligo County Home.
55.
Following my recent visit to the area and discussions with local officers and others interested, I have arranged that the County Manager will discuss with the architect the feasibility of securing an alternative site.
I feel it is only right to point out, however, that it would be necessary to provide that a section of the existing buildings would in any event have to be continued in use. Otherwise, the overall cost of the project would be prohibitive.
Is the Minister aware that there is grave concern in Sligo about this old hospital? It has served a purpose down through the years but it is an old construction which was erected during the British régime and the people now feel that it should be changed. The atmosphere in it is dreary and dismal. It is wet and damp. Many prominent people think the site should be changed so that the lives of the old people will be more comfortable and they will have some privacy.
I visited the old county home site and I also had discussions with prominent people in Sligo, as well as with councillors, in regard to the proposal. I also visited the alternative site suggested. On two occasions on the same day with the County Manager, I looked at various sites. The problem is that the cost of putting the county home in its entirety on an alternative site would be very great indeed. It would be prohibitive. Two sections of the old county home are in good condition and it would save a great deal of money if they could be used. It can be on a different site from the one originally suggested, not necessarily the one mentioned which is beside the convent. In either event, we would be using the good parts of the building and I think the overall result would be to get rid of the atmosphere and the objections which the Deputy mentioned.
I wonder would the Minister consider the possibility of supplementing the accommodation in whatever part of the county home is still usable by providing a parochial home instead of shifting people from their homes into a central county home? Could the pressure not be relieved by providing a local institution which would keep them at home?
That is a separate question but I am very interested in that aspect of the development of our services. I agree that a parochial service, if it is possible to provide, is a socially desirable thing. I have that very much in mind.
Are there not many houses not only in Sligo but all over the country—sometimes on estates which are acquired by the Land Commission—which have to be knocked down or demolished that could be used for the purpose which Deputy Dillon suggests? Their attractive feature would be the ability of people to visit these old people.
They would also have the very desirable objective of keeping husband and wife together. In fact, there are proposals for the use of Castlemacgarrett House outside Claremorris for use by old people.
That will be run by a religious order.
Yes.