29 September 2011

Parliamentary Questions

• Closure of psychiatric hospitals and transfer of people to the community
• Number of sports inclusion officers

PARLIAMENTARY QUESTIONS  

• Closure of psychiatric hospitals and transfer of people to the community

Deputy Michael Healy-Rae (I): asked the Minister for Health if he will ensure adequate capital funding in 2012 to continue the closure of psychiatric hospitals and transfer of service users to appropriate community based accommodation; Minister for Health (Deputy James Reilly):  The Government’s policy on mental health incorporates the recommendations of Vision for Change. This Government is committed to reducing the stigma of mental illness, ensuring early and appropriate intervention and vastly improving access to modern mental health services in the community. The Programme for Government states that unsuitable psychiatric institutions will be closed and patients including those with intellectual disabilities and older people in the care of the mental health services will be provided with more appropriate community based facilities. Children and adolescents will be provided with appropriate in-patient accommodation. The Health Service Executive has achieved considerable progress in recent years in providing appropriate accommodation and its capital programme supports the Government’s commitments as set out in the Programme for Government. The Executive’s Capital Plan 2011-2015, which is published on its website set out its planned programme including mental health infrastructure. For example 10 x 6 bed bungalows have been provided for people with intellectual disabilities who were previously resident at St Ita’s Portrane. New in-patient accommodation for children and adolescent services has been provided — 20 beds each at Bessboro in Cork and St Anne’s Galway. At St Vincent’s Fairview, six child & adolescent beds have been provided, a further six beds are under construction and it is planned to deliver a further eight. Hostel accommodation is being provided at Clondalkin, Ballyfermot, Islandbridge, Crumlin, and St John’s Enniscorthy. Long term residential accommodation is under construction at Wexford, Mullingar and the accommodation provided at Ballinasloe is operational. Acute mental health departments on acute hospital campuses are at different stages of delivery — Beaumont at construction; OLOL Drogheda at design stage; Letterkenny opened in recent days. The Programme for Government provided for a Comprehensive Spending Review which is now well under way. This exercise includes a review of the planned health care capital programme. The outcomes of this review will determine the health care capital allocations for 2012 and future years. 

• Number of sports inclusion officers

Deputy Pádraig Mac Lochlainn (SF): asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the number of sports inclusion disability officer positions filled and vacant at this time; his plans to increase participation in sports and physical activity by persons with a disability;

Minister of State at the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport (Deputy Michael Ring): Sports inclusion disability officer positions are the responsibility of the Irish Sports Council, and I have referred the question to them for direct reply. I would ask the Deputy to contact my office if a reply has not been received within ten days.

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