Carrick-on-Suir action group continues fight to reopen St Brigid's District Hospital

The Save St Brigid’s Hospital Action Group has opened a channel of communication with the HSE and hopes to meet soon with its new Head of Services for Older People in the South East to progress their campaign.

A HSE official met with members of the Action Group and local politicians on the grounds of the former district hospital on October 11 last year and discussed the possibility of restoring the hospital’s three palliative care suites, which are greatly missed by the local community.

Carrick Cllr David Dunne (SF) said this meeting arose from the attendance of two members of the Save St Brigid’s Action Group, Elaine Wall and Frances Keane Power, at a meeting of the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Public Petitions in early October last year to further discuss the 11,000 name petition calling for the hospital’s reopening. The HSE official attended that session of the Petitions Committee.

He said the Action Group is now hoping to meet with the HSE South East’s new Head of Services for Older People to progress their goal to at least get the hospice suites reopened at the hospital that also provided respite and convalescent inpatient care to people from Carrrick-on-Suir and its wide hinterland.

These palliative care beds were needed as a “matter of urgency” he said, as families were driving up and down to Waterford to visit dying loved ones and it was taking a toll on them.

Carrick Municipal District Cathaoirleach Cllr Kieran Bourke, who initiated the Save St Brigid’s Hospital petition, described the engagement that has developed between the Action Group, local politicians and HSE as a “glimmer of hope” .

The Fianna Fáil councillor said the HSE official they met at St Brigid’s seemed very genuine and is looking into the possibility of re-opening the palliative care beds. The official was awaiting a report from the new HSE manager.

“It would be a wonderful stepping stone if we got the palliative care units reopened,” he said.

A large gathering of local people met outside St. Brigid’s Hospital in Carrick last Saturday, February 3 to receive an update on the Save St Brigid’s Hospital Campaign. The meeting was organised by the Save St Brigid’s Hospital Action Group to coincide with the St Brigid’s Bank Holiday Weekend.

The gathering was attended by Cllrs Bourke and Dunne from Carrick-on-Suir Dunne, Independent TD Mattie McGrath, former TD Seamus Healy and Fine gael Cllr Seanie Power from Rathgormack, county Waterford.

St. Brigid’s Hospital has been closed to in-patients since the end of April 2020 shortly after it was re-designated as a step down care unit for people recovering from Covid 19. It’s now used for diabetes clinics and office accommodation for HSE staff.

It was highlighted at the gathering that families from the Carrick area now have to travel as far as Tipperary Town and Clogheen to access respite care for loved ones.

Save St Brigid’s Action Group member Dean McGrath, meanwhile, is urging the public to lobby HSE management on the need for St Brigid’s to reopen.

He said the Action Group will issue a template email for the lobbying campaign.