Danny Healy-Rae on health insurance, hospitals and staffing

I am glad to get the opportunity to talk on health insurance and a few other things as well, because we have a lot of issues. First of all, in relation to the health insurance, I believe that everyone that can possibly afford it should have health insurance, and I welcome any move by the Department of Health and the Government to put money into the private health insurance to help to bring down the premiums or the policies, if that's what will follow. And then I worry, will the insurance companies take advantage then and rise the premiums again? Because that seems to be what happens any time with a lot of interventions by the Government, those kind of people take advantage. And there is a lot of concern by people who have private health insurance, that when they need attention, I know a man that's suffering agony in the garden this present night, and he won't be able to sleep. He'll be up all night and trying to get back into bed again, and he's suffering with his back and he won't be seen, even though he has private health and cover, until the very near the end of February. It's a fright, torture to go through Christmas and all that, with that kind of pain. There are several others. It doesn't seem to matter when, or a lot of times, that you have the private health insurance, it doesn't seem to benefit the sick person in the way that we like that it could. We are short of regular staff in many areas, in our hospitals, home health and in all the health services. And I know a few nurses now that have retired, and they have asked the question, because there's a new community hospital to open in Killarney, that they made themselves available that they would work for a number of hours during the week. And do you know what they got back? It's a letter threatening them that if their pensions could be stopped, if they didn't, you know, answer this question about pension abatement. And it made them, there's a number of nurses that gave their lives to nursing in Kerry, very capable people, men and women. And they're terrified now, just because they mentioned the fact that they would work a few hours, the end of the letter that they got back anyway suggested that their pensions might be cut off completely. No, I want that to be dealt with. Because it has happened, it has happened in or around Killarney and Tralee, to a number of people that tried to, that would like to go back working. And I'm asking that that be dealt with. The other thing, Minister, that I've mentioned there is the new community hospital stroke nursing home, long-term nursing beds in Killarney. The building is finished, but there's no deed given for the transfer over. And I don't know if it can happen in the depth of winter, but it needs to happen. And are the staff in place? Are the staff organised? And when will it be fully open? A lot of people, elected representatives and sick people and elderly people are asking about this day by day. And so many other things depend on that thing. You see, we're promised a minor injuries clinic, which is to be open in St. Columbanus, which is the nursing home part of the long-term part of the district hospital in Killarney, the present one. A primary care clinic. Is to be open in St. Finanus, or is that going to happen? And there was supposed to be some special kind of a respite, respite beds opened in the district hospital to take people. Because it's something that's not happening at all in Kerry to the extent that it should. People are entitled to four weeks respite. And it's trying them, even, and I was raised here in the fall of the year, and in September. It's trying them to get a few days, and some of them didn't get it at all. I know one lady, she never left her mother's side for the last five years, and she wanted to go away for a week. And she could get no one to mind the mother, or she couldn't get respite anywhere. Kimere or Killarney or anywhere. That's the other thing then. We have a lot of beds in the likes of Kimere Community Hospital, Dingle Community Hospital, not opened, and the reason the beds are there, Minister, but we don't have the staff, or that's what we've been told. We've been told that now for ten or twelve years. And we need to sort that out, Minister. And it's very important. And then, the other thing that happens, elderly people go in sick to UHK, and then when they're better, and they're seen after very well there, and whether it is Kimere or Killarney District Hospital, or the ones I mentioned already, at least all or anywhere, they're sent there then to recuperate for a week or two. And invariably then, it's up to, they come back, the families come back, that my father, my mother, my aunt needs another week or two. And it's not available. They're under pressure. It's the same all over our whole network in Kerry. And, you see, they have been, when they leave the UHK, they're promised that they will get a home care package. But even after the two or three weeks in the District Hospital, there's no home care package. It doesn't arrive. The people come home, and even though they're ordained to get home help, so many hours of it, it doesn't ever happen, Minister, because the staff are there, the home helps are there to come out at the times they're supposed to. That means then, if there's an elderly person living with them, that may be doing good to walk around themselves, may be doing good to get up to the bed and just manage to go to the toilet or go to the kitchen for a cup of tea or something, they're largely with the responsibility then of their companion, their partner, their husband or their wife or whatever it is, to mind them and to take care of them. That's not right. If they got proper care, we could save the nation a fortune if they could get seen after at home, proper home help. Two or three visits in the day for the seven days of the week and the bank holidays, because if you're elderly and sick, you don't just get better the weekends or the bank holidays either. You won't be good enough to go out and have a good time or anything like that. They need the help. But, invariably, that's very hard. More often than not, that's very little hard, because they don't have the staff to come out the bank holidays or the Sundays. And we need to deal with that issue, Minister. Look, I'm not fighting, I'm only asking, because on behalf of the people that need this. I see here, I've written down just one word, palliative care. I believe that we're the best palliative care unit in the country. It's a template for how people should be seen after in their final weeks and days. It is a massive unit, and I want to compliment all the nurses, all the men and women and all the staff that work there. And their heart goes into the people that are going there to finish up. And it is very tough. I've been there a number of times. And invariably, they'll always thank the staff there, the patients will, for doing what they do for them. And we're proud of that unit. And it's, like I said to you Minister, you must look at it because it's a template for the rest of the country. The HSE wants to sell the lands at St Finan's, and the buildings. And they don't seem to be wanting to make any use of it. And in the first place, I never felt they should have the selling of it, because it went back in time because Kerry County Council transferred those lands and those buildings to the HSE when they came to be in charge or when they took over the health service. And there's valuable lands there for housing, but the HSE want to sell the whole lot together. Now the Land Development Agency say they only want the land. And I say to you Minister, don't let that happen. Don't let the Land Development Agency get there. We have a lot of, get hold of them like that. We have a lot of people, young fellas and young girls, that want to build their own homes. And I'm asking that, seeing as they, when you're above 36,000 or 37,000, you won't even get on the housing list. There's people above that, middle income earners, and they should, those sites should be made at least affordable for people in that category, so that they could build their own house because it is impossible to get planning permission in or outside of it. And I'm asking that, that, that it be somewhere organized, get the local authority involved. So, these sites should be made available to people for, that want to build their own house, or that want to buy their own house. So, the people on the social housing list, there's a lot of them waiting, but there's a lot of houses built in that regard as well. But the ones that have been totally and absolutely left behind, is the working boy and girl, are the working man and woman, that want to build their own house. It's failing completely, and it's not happening there, and I'm asking you to deal with that too. Thank you, Deputy Healy-Rae. Thank you.