31 July 2010
A statement has been released from the Minister for Health's office regarding the delay in opening Dingle's new community hospital, indicating that registration with HIQA, which would cleat the way for a new opening date, could take months to approve. The statement was made by Health Minister Mary Harney's office in response to a query by local Councillor Brendan Griffin who sought clarification on the matter. Following media reports during the week that the new Dingle Hospital was to open on Tuesday, July 27th, the bombshell was dropped that the opening was to be postponed yet again. The reason given for the postponement was that the new hospital would not be formally registered with the Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA) in time - an obligation as part of the regulations relating to residential care for older people. The announcement sparked anger locally as arrangements had already been made to transfer patients; medical supplies, equipment and files had already been transferred from St. Elizabeth's in advance of the proposed opening on July 27th. According to the statement from the Minister's office: "the Health Act, 2007 provides for the independent registration and inspection of all nursing homes. Since 1 July, 2009 all nursing homes, public and private, are registered under the Health Act, 2007 (Registration of Designated Centres for Older People) Regulations 2009 by the Chief Inspector. The Chief Inspector grants registration to new applicants under section 50 of the Health Act 2007 if she is satisfied they meet the requirements set out under the Act. This new system of registration and inspection is to underpin quality and safety for residents in nursing homes. The HSE has informed the Department that the new residential centre at Dingle is currently undergoing the registration process. This takes a number of months to complete and involves inspections by HIQA inspectors." Local Councillors Brendan Griffin and Seamus Cosai Fitzgerald have both stated that this situation is unacceptable as the new hospital is far superior to the old hospital in every way and that patients in Dingle will now be subject to a lengthy wait if the Minister fails to prioritise HIQA's approval processs. Questions have also been raised as to why the Minister's office and the HSE failed to set the HIQA registration process in motion months ago, before announcing that the hospital would be opened on July 27th.
