Vol. 474 No. 1
82 Miss M. Wallace asked the Minister for Health the number of people with learning disabilities who are currently housed in St. Ita's, Portrane, County Dublin; the number who will be moved to more suitable housing as a result of funding provided for 1997; and the timescale during which they will be moved to more suitable accommodation. [2585/97]
A total of 343 residents are currently accommodated in St. Joseph's Mental Handicap Service on the campus of St. Ita's Hospital. My Department has been working closely with the Eastern Health Board to implement the proposals of the board, as submitted to my Department in 1994, to transfer clients with a mental handicap to community settings, where appropriate, and to improve the accommodation and services available to those clients who need to be cared for in a more structured environment.
In the period 1993-96 capital funding amounting to £750,000 for the upgrading of existing accommodation and revenue funding of £265,000 to increase staffing levels, to provide multi-disciplinary support and to enhance services to persons with a mental handicap who are also behaviourally disturbed, has been provided by my Department to St. Joseph's Mental Handicap Service, St. Ita's Hospital. Capital funding of £500,000 and revenue funding amounting to £280,000 has also been provided in recent years to transfer persons off the hospital campus.
As the Deputy is aware, additional funding of £12 million has been provided in 1997 for services to persons with a mental handicap and £2 million will be used to meet identified needs in existing services. The remaining £10 million will be used to put in place new services. This funding will be used to address a number of priority needs including the continuation of the ongoing programme to transfer persons with a mental handicap from psychiatric hospitals.
Additional revenue funding of £100,000 has also been provided for St. Joseph's Mental Handicap Service, St. Ita's Hospital in 1997 to assist the board to improve the staffing levels in the existing service.
Officials from my Department will shortly be discussing with the Eastern Health Board the measures which could be taken this year to continue the programme to transfer persons with a mental handicap from St. Ita's Hospital to more appropriate care settings now that the 1997 allocation for new developments is available.
