Dáil Éireann debate -
Tuesday, 17 Oct 1995

Vol. 457 No. 1

Written Answers. - St. Ita's Hospital, Portrane.

Tom Moffatt

Question:

95 Dr. Moffatt asked the Minister for Health the capital developments that took place in the mental handicap section of St. Ita's Hospital, Portrane, County Dublin, arising from safety requirements, replacement of seriously dilapidated buildings or other obsolescent facilities in each of the years from 1990 to 1995. [15017/95]

Minister of State at the Department of Health (Mr. O'Shea)

Responsibility for the provision of services to persons with a mental handicap in St. Ita's Hospital. Portrane is, in the first instance, a matter for the Eastern Health Board. In relation to the provision of capital funding and the upgrading of facilities at the hospital in the period 1990 to 1995, I have been informed by the board that the following is the position.

In line with its policy to reduce the number of people with a mental handicap living in institutional settings and to relocate them to more appropriate care settings, the board has utilised both its own resources and residential facilities which it has purchased throughout the region to improve the standard of accommodation for its clients. Since 1990 11 staff houses associated with the hospital have been made available to the mental handicap service. This has facilitated ward closures or reductions in numbers in various wards. The estimated value of this accommodation is in the region of £750,000.

In addition community facilities have been provided in a further 15 houses throughout the Eastern Health Board region with an approximate value of £1.3 million. The majority of these places have been for clients from St. Ita's.

In the period 1990 to 1994, a sum of £660,000 was spent on improving and upgrading the heating system. Between 1991 and 1992 a number of staff houses were used to provide more domestic style accommodation on the campus and the old vacated temporary buildings were demolished as they were in an unsafe condition. In 1993 the board received a capital grant of £250,000 from the Department to assist in upgrading the hospital facilities. This enabled unit E to be closed and substantial refurbishment to be carried out on unit B made to provide residential facilities for 14 seriously disturbed residents. Substantial upgrading was also carried out in unit A female, unit B and the hostels on the hospital campus, i.e. Rushbrook House, St. Joseph's and St. Vincent's. In addition to the capital grant received from the Department, the board contributed a further £50,000 from its own resources. In 1994, the Department allocated a further capital grant of £100,000 to enable the programme of refurbishment and upgrading to be continued. This funding was used to carry out the restructuring of unit 11 and to continue the upgrading of A, B and C block and unit 12. The board contributed a further £100,000 from its own resources to assist with the cost of this work.

A third capital grant of £100,000 was made available by the Department this year to continue the ongoing upgrading of the units which will be maintained on the campus on a medium to long-term basis. A further grant of £50,000 has also been made available to the board to purchase equipment for the new gymnasium and the day care and recreational services. A capital grant of £400,000 has also been made available to the board in 1995 for the purchase of residential facilities to allow for the transfer of 24 clients to new accommodation and for the closure of unit K. It is the board's intention that this unit will be closed at the end of the year.