I thank the Cathaoirleach for allowing me to raise this issue. I ask the Minister to give an early indication of the provision of deficit funding to provide for the replacement of the Orchard Centre, Gort, County Galway. This centre was established approximately 20 years ago. At the time of the disastrous fire, there were 50 people placed there. Of these, 30 were residential patients while the remainder were day care patients.
I wish to thank the Brothers of Charity for the tremendous work they have done at this centre over the years. It is difficult not to underestimate the value of the centre to the many adults with special needs in the area who did not have any service in the past. The centre serves a catchment area from Kinvara to Loughrea – this includes Gort town and the wider area – and the loss of such a service in this tragic way is a severe blow to the many people who avail of it and also to the staff who have worked in the centre for so long and given such commitment to it.
I pay special tribute to the nursing staff and the caretakers who, in difficult circumstances, evacuated the centre on the night of the fire. As a result of their actions, there were no injuries or loss of life. I also thank the fire services in Loughrea and Gort for their tremendous work in bringing the fire under control at an early stage.
This centre provides training of a high standard for elderly people. It also provides physiotherapy and other services, including a small element of work training facilitated by local manufacturing industry, which provides therapy for people who still want to work on assembly of a very light nature.
I ask the Minister to ensure that the Department would make a quick decision to provide funding, through the most appropriate agency, so that new services can be put in place at the centre. At present, the 30 residential patients are provided with accommodation in four rented houses and while that is a suitable stop-gap measure, it is important that they should be placed in a new centre in the near future. The assessors have moved in and I understand it is not possible to reconstruct or renovate the existing building. It will be necessary to provide a new purpose built premises to provide a full range of services in the future.
What is required in this instance is deficit funding. There will be no completely new cost to the Department, the Brothers of Charity, the Western Health Board or all the agencies combined. It is of the utmost importance that the deficit funding to which I refer is provided in order that these people can return to the quality of life they have enjoyed over the past 20 years. Some of these patients have been at the centre on a long-term basis and they have become accustomed to the services provided. It is vital that the Minister would give an indication that the work could commence at an early stage on a replacement building so that the services built up can recommence in the near future.
