Hospice talks break down
Talks between the South Westmeath Hospice Committee and the HSE over a proposed new base for the hospice in Athlone have broken down.
The latest twist in the ongoing controversy comes some 20 months after the HSE first announced shock plans to close the hospice facility in the grounds of the St Vincent's Care centre in Athlone by the end of 2019. The proposal was to replace it with two palliative care beds in St Vincent's Care Centre in the short-term, and potentially up to four palliative care beds in a new community nursing unit in Clonbrusk in the longer-term.
That announcement was subsequently withdrawn after a huge public outcry and political intervention and negotiations have been continuing on and off over the intervening months. These discussions have centred on finding an agreement on the relocation of the hospice facilities to a new 50-bed community nursing unit planned in Clonbrusk, a replacement for St Vincent's Care Centre.
However, the situation has come to a head this week, with the South Westmeath Hospice Committee, in a statement, effectively indicating that talks had broken down. It confirmed that is now seeking legal advice on the matter and added that it would also recommence its Save Your Hospice public campaign.
The statement emerged in the wake of a meeting with HSE officials recently which the hospice committee described as an “utter devastation”.
In the statement, The South Westmeath Hospice said: “At a meeting held on Friday April 16, with members of South Westmeath Hospice, the HSE withdrew elements of a draft agreement and gave the committee two weeks in which to respond. Throughout the meeting the HSE adopted a rigid approach leaving little scope for movement towards an agreement.”
“What was presented differed from the agreement reached at a meeting on October 7, 2020. Despite commitments to send the agreed proposals to National Office for approval, this hasn’t happened.”
Describing the meeting as an “utter devastation”, Chairperson of the South Westmeath Hospice committee Clare Lennon said throughout the process the hospice committee had conducted itself with a spirit of collegiality in order to reach a solution.
She said at the meeting “in place of any constructive negotiation”, the HSE told the hospice committee what was going to happen.
“The plans presented by the HSE are unacceptable and we are now taking legal advice. We will also reignite our ‘Save Your Hospice’ campaign,” she said.
The current hospice building in the grounds of St Vincent's Care Centre, which at the time cost €1.9m, was developed by the South Westmeath Hospice. It was opened in 2010 and was largely funded by local voluntary donations and fundraising campaigns. Nursing and operational staff are provided by the HSE.
When plans for the proposed Clonbrusk Nursing Unit were initially being drawn up, the HSE provided a letter of guarantee to the South Westmeath Hospice which pledged that the complete service provision from the hospice building on the St Vincent's site would be transferred and mirrored in the new Clonbrusk unit.
It's understood that the South Westmeath Hospice Committee is seeking this commitment to be fulfilled.
Meanwhile, in recent weeks, the HSE said it hopes to start work on the new 50-bed Community Nursing Unit in Clonbrusk to replace St Vincent's Care Centre in Athlone towards the end of 2021.
The HSE said the tender process for the appointment of the public-private partnership contractor for a national public private partnership project encompassing nine community nursing units is almost concluded and the current programme anticipates a start date on site for Athlone CNU towards the end of 2021.
At the time of going to press, the HSE had yet to respond to a request for comment on the hospice controversy.