Vol. 539 No. 1
253 Mr. D. Carey asked the Minister for Health and Children if he has received a copy of the submission which the voluntary committee at Lisdoonvarna, County Clare, has drawn up as a means of re-opening the Stella Maris Nursing Home in the town. [18774/01]
As the Deputy will be aware, the provision of health services in County Clare is a matter for the Mid-Western Health Board.
A local voluntary group, the Stella Maris Nursing Home Committee, has been established with the aim of re-opening the nursing home. The committee has made a detailed proposal in relation to the possible future development of the home which would require the health board to consider purchasing the home and subsequently leasing it to a board of directors operating as a charitable trust on behalf of the local communities. It is understood that the committee has forwarded its proposal to the Mid-Western Health Board for consideration.
On foot of recent representations made to my Department some members of the committee met with departmental officials on 19 June 2001. A presentation of the proposals was provided and it was agreed that the Department would contact the Mid-Western Health Board to canvass the views of the board on the proposal in the context of the board's regional requirements and priorities for services for older people. This is being pursued with the health board at present.
It was also suggested at the meeting that the committee would continue to liaise with the Mid-Western Health Board and it was pointed out that the question of acquiring the home would have to be considered in the context of the board's local service requirements and priorities.
The Mid-Western Health Board has received significant increases to funding for services for older people in recent years. The amount of additional funding has increased from £180,000 in 1997, £225,000 in 1998, £500,000 in 1999 and to £1,994,000 in 2000. The figure for 2001 is £3.573 million. In the case of the nursing home subvention scheme, the amount made available rose from £1.169 million in 1994, the first full year of the scheme, to almost £4 million in 2000. The figure for 2001 is approximately £4.5 million.
