THE MANAGEMENT of a respite care centre in Ballyfermot is to explore how those with no other means of transport can be accommodated after transport services to the centre were curtailed.
A spokeswoman for the HSE Dublin/Mid-Leinster region said transport services at Cherry Orchard Hospital had been curtailed as a result of staff retirement and long-term sick leave within the ambulance service.
“The social work department in Cherry Orchard Hospital will explore on an individual basis how recipients of respite care will be transferred from their residence to Cherry Orchard and home again.” The spokeswoman said the provision of care and ambulance services at Cherry Orchard, which provides care to patients with Alzheimer’s and dementia, would continue. But Fine Gael spokeswoman for older citizens Catherine Byrne accused the HSE of targeting elderly people for cuts.
“This service is a vital link for the families whose loved ones need to be admitted for care. Once again, the most in need are being victimised for the mess the Government has made in running the country,” she said.
“These elderly patients have given their all through the years, raising their families and making their contribution to the economy and to society. Now in their time of need this Fianna Fáil/Green Government and Minister for Health Mary Harney leave them stranded, with even the basic need of a bus service to bring them to hospital being taken away.”