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St. Francis Welfare Home in Fermoy – the HSE is being urged to make more use of the facility. Photo: Brian Moore

It was decided at a meeting of the Retention of St. Francis Welfare Home Group last week, to write to the HSE urging them to make more use of the facility, if possible.

The matron of St. Patrick's Community Hospital, Annette Clancy, was invited to attend the meeting which was convened by Fermoy Town Councillor, Michael Hanley to get an update on the present usage of the facility and determine if more use could be made. He felt it was timely to get an update, with the town council facing abolition next month.

Mayor Olive Corcoran felt they should have waited to hold the meeting until a member of the group, who was to the fore in the campaign to keep the welfare home open, was available.

The matron advised that public health nurses are based there, operating clinics Monday to Friday and that the Alzheimer Society operate a daycare service there each Tuesday. The public health nurses serve the Fermoy and outlying areas such as Glanworth, Ballyhooly and Rathcormac. The Alzheimer Society daycare service is linked in to the one that operates in Conna.

PLENTY OF GOODWILL

Cllr. Corcoran said she thought the original plan was to operate the Alzheimer daycare service three days a week. The matron of St. Patrick's Hospital said she wasn't in a position to comment, as that was her first time to attend a meeting of the retention group.

Cllr. Tadhg O'Donovan said that was what was originally envisaged. It was introduced on a pilot scheme initially, one day a week to build up to three days. Two-thirds of the building is being taken up by offices and administrative services of the HSE, he said. It's effectively being used in the same way as the old dispensaries worked. "So it is being utilised in that sense," he said. He didn't think anyone in Fermoy was found wanting in trying to get the best outcome for St. Francis Home.

Cllr. Noel McCarthy said that, as a public representative going forward for re-election, it would be top of his agenda, as would Fermoy Community Hospital. He agreed to a suggestion that putting in extra facilities in St. Francis Home should be looked at, and that they should be highlighting and promoting such a course of action.

Cllr. Hanley said there's a lot of goodwill towards St. Francis Home and it seemed to be working well at present, so he wondered if it should be a case of leaving well enough alone. Cllr. Frank O'Flynn said it was worth fighting for and what they did get was in no small way because of the group's efforts. "We established what we could out of it," he said.

Cllr. O'Flynn was asked about the new primary care centre for Fermoy, highlighted in The Avondhu last week. He said it is a public-private partnership and pre-dated Health Minister James Reilly's plans for the establishment of such facilities. The mayor said it was definitely a good news story and that, going forward, the town council will be gone and it'll be up to newly elected councillors to see that Fermoy gets its share of new facilities.

A representative of Deputy Tom Barry's office attended the meeting as he was unable to make it. The mayor said the TD was most accommodating to their group previously.

The Avondhu came in for praise from councillors Hanley and O'Flynn for highlighting the issue at that time.

It was agreed to write to the HSE, as a committee, before the town council finishes up, thanking them for making use of the home and urging the Alzheimer Society to bring their daycare service there up to three days. In conclusion, Cllr. Hanley complimented the matron on doing an excellent job.

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