CLEAR ASSURANCE SOUGHT ON DECISION
HEALTH chiefs have been asked for a clear assurance that a decision to close Dromore's Skeagh House has not yet been taken.
The request came from Lagan Valley MLAs Jeffrey Donaldson and Edwin Poots in a presentation to the board of the Southern Health and Social Care Trust.
Making the presentation on their behalf was their personal assistant, Mr. Paul Stewart.
"We seek a clear statement from the Trust that no final decision has been made on the closure of Skeagh House," he said, "and that no decision will be made until the views and concerns of the local community have been fully taken into account and addressed."
Mr. Stewart told the Trust that Mr. Donaldson and Mr. Poots were strongly opposed to the proposed closure of Skeagh House, along with the vast majority of people within the Dromore community, who supported Skeagh House residents in "their right to retain their home".
The DUP campaigners said they couldn't understand the Trust's proposal in light of projected growth in the numbers of elderly people and referred to a recent Help the Aged call for "good quality residential homes and good quality day care" in view of their submission that each day 32 elderly people died alone.
They also challenged the Trust's statements regarding alternative accommodation for Skeagh House residents.
"With an increasingly elderly population in Northern Ireland," said Mr. Stewart, "and statistics showing that the numbers of pensioners will increase dramatically over the next 20 years, Mr. Donaldson and Mr. Poots are at a loss to understand why the Trust feels that a growing town and community like Dromore no longer requires this type of facility.
"Whilst it is recognised that many elderly people wish to remain in their own homes or with their families as long as possible, there is an increasing number of older citizens who cannot cope in their own homes and whose families are unable to provide the level of support that they require to live in the community. As people are living longer, the number of these citizens who require such care will increase, not decrease, and therefore it is essential that a facility like Skeagh House is retained."
He added, "The Trust has stated that there are alternative forms of accommodation available to these older people but it should be noted that some of the residents in Dromore are in excess of 90 years-old.
"Many of the housing associations no longer provide a full warden service in their sheltered accommodation and this means that a vital component of the care that is provided at Skeagh House cannot be replicated in this sheltered accommodation.
"Neither the Housing Executive nor the housing associations have plans to build additional social housing for the elderly in the Dromore area and therefore there is no alternative provision to meet the needs of the elderly residents who reside in Skeagh House."
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Saturday 04 February 2012
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