The three Midlands counties Laois, Offaly and Westmeath are dtill without any specialised palliative care inpatient unit.
Addressing the matter, Laois Sinn Fein TD, Brian Stanley, has said accused Minister for Health Stephen Donnelly of “kicking the can down the road again” for palliative care in the Midlands.
“I have raised this numerous times over the years along with others,” Deputy Stanley said.
“While we have received many promises and false starts, it appears from the latest reply from the Minister of Health that the can has been kicked down the road again on this matter.”
Minister Donnelly confirmed capital funding would be made available for a 20-bed specialist palliative care unit in the Midlands.
However, Deputy Stanley took umbrage with the following quote from the Minister’s announcement:
“It is anticipated that a decision on the chosen site for the new Midlands Hospice will be announced shortly.”
Citing this, Deputy Stanley said: “While I would hope that this will happen quickly, this issue has been pushed back and forward and up and down now for several years.
“We were told the funding was provided for this two years ago.
It has left counties like Laois and Offaly without a centre to provide the care needed at the most difficult times for patients and families, when people are reaching end of life.
“Organisations such as Laois Hospice have carried out trojan work over the years, raising hundreds of thousands of euros through voluntary efforts and the support of local communities.
“The Fianna Fail/Fine Gael Government have not shown the same level of urgency and now need to move ahead.
“It’s long past the time for this facility to be provided which other parts of the country have had for years.”
