Danny Healy-Rae pushes for nursing home visits and 1m distancing
Danny Healy-Rae addressed the minister about nursing home visits, testing delays, an asylum centre in Cahar Savin and distancing rules affecting tourism. He urged controlled reopening of nursing homes to allow relatives access, pressed for faster testing and contact tracing, and called for reducing distancing from two metres to one metre to help hotels and pubs reopen.
Nursing home visits
The deputy repeatedly asked the minister to open nursing homes to family members in a controlled fashion. He said the worst aspect of the pandemic was elderly people dying alone and appealed for relatives to be allowed access so residents are not left asking why their families do not visit.
Local asylum centre concerns
The deputy raised concerns about an asylum centre at Cahar Savin, saying it was clear the HSE had not given approval and asking whether residents' wellbeing was being compromised. He urged the minister to check the situation and to move people out if necessary, saying local residents were unhappy and wanted the centre cleared.
Testing delays and contact tracing
He criticised current testing turnaround times, saying some people wait well over 20 days for notification, which undermines efficient contact tracing. He asked the minister to address delays and to be informed of any specific cases where waits remain excessive.
Distancing and tourism impact
The deputy pressed for reducing physical distancing from two metres to one metre, citing WHO guidance, to enable hotels, pubs and the wider tourism sector in Kerry and elsewhere to reopen. He warned that domestic holiday weeks are limited and urged action to allow businesses to reopen by late June or early July to restore income and kickstart local economies.
Minister's response
The minister acknowledged the loneliness in nursing homes and said visitor restrictions were introduced to save lives, adding that the National Public Health Emergency Team would advise on possible visits. The minister offered to write directly on the asylum centre and asked to be sent any testing delay cases, noting government would consider these issues as it worked through the roadmap.
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Thank you very much, John Cole. First of all, Minister, I need to talk to you again about nursing homes. I asked you on the last occasion that I had questions with you to open up the nursing homes to family members so they can visit their elderly parents or elderly relatives in a controlled fashion because it's becoming clearer that, first of all, it was very serious and to the worst aspect of the whole pandemic that elderly people after all their lives working for their families and working for their communities and working for our country had to die alone with nobody holding their hand or able to talk to them for a few minutes. I think that was the saddest and the worst part of the whole aspect of the virus. I'm asking you now to open up the nursing homes to allow relatives in a controlled fashion and to give them access because I know of elderly people that are asking their daughters and their sons, why aren't they coming to visit me? So, I'm asking you again. So, I'm asking you again. In relation to Cahar Savin and the refugee centre there, the asylum centre that was open there, it's very clear and it has become clearer that the HSE did not give approval to this centre. I'm asking you again. I'm asking you again. Are you satisfied that the well-being of the people of Cahar Savin and of the residents is not being compromised and I'm asking you please to check it out and make sure and I'm asking you again to move those people out of there. They want to get out of there. They want to get out of there themselves. The people of Cahar Savin are not happy. I'm asking you again to do that. Testing. It's clear. It's clear that the testing that's being done is taking too long. There's too many delays and it's well over 20 days before some people get notified. That's not satisfactory. And it's, you can't have efficient contact tracing when it's going on for that long. You need to address that. I'm asking you, Minister, I asked the Taoiseach today to reduce the requirement from two metres distancing to one metre. We won't kickstart our economy or get our local economies going again if we don't. The WHO suggests that one metre will do. Why do we have to maintain the two metres? I'm asking you. We need to give hotels and pubs and the hostelry industry in Kerry a chance to get going. And if we don't allow them to open their doors on 29th of June, Spain is opening up for tourism on the 1st of July. You'll clean this country out. And people that have given their lives and their fortunes and put their whole efforts into the tourism industry, they won't get going this year. And you're a member of the government or the minister for health or a very important part of the cabinet. I'm asking you now to continue to ensure that the wellbeing of our people that gave so much to tourism in Kerry and right around the country. West Carpe, clear all the places. And if we don't open up now for the domestic holidaymakers, they have only those six or seven weeks because after the 15th of August, they'll be going home to go back to school. West Carpe, clear all the places. This is our one chance. If Spain are opening up, I can't see we're all under the one sky. Why can't we help our people and allow them to open their doors and allow to get economic activity going? We need income. We need the benefit from income of these places to trigger our economy and kickstart it. And I'm appealing to you as a member of the government to do your best to ensure if the WHO suggested one metre will do, why do we have to have two metres? That's the question. I think the deputy makes a very valid point in relation to nursing home visits. I myself have been talking to residents in nursing homes by FaceTime and I know how lonely people are feeling. I know how incredible the staff are in terms of trying to ease that loneliness. I know how family relatives are going up to the window of a bedroom and phoning from outside and having a conversation with their mum or their dad. People are trying really hard here and it's really tough. I know the visitor restrictions were brought in to save lives. And I'm eager that if it's safe to, if it's safe to allow visits again in some circumstances, that that happen. And I know that the National Public Health Emergency Team would have considered this today. They'll be providing me with some advice tonight and I'll be briefing the government tomorrow in relation. So I'll keep the, keep the deputy informed, but I, but I hear what you have to say. In relation to Cara Syveen, I don't want to take up all your colleagues' time, but I will write you directly on the issues. No one should be waiting 20 days in relation to testing. That's, I'm hoping that's from a different time. But if there's any cases where people are waiting delays, please do send them to me, because I'm very clear what the HSE says about its turnaround times now. And I'm absolutely sympathetic and understandable of the very big challenges that sectors of our economy face, and the tourism sector being one. We obviously have to follow the public health advice. I get that. But government will be considering all of these issues as we continue to work through our roadmap. And I'll see you next time. I'll see you next time. Bye. Bye. Bye. Bye. Bye. Bye. Bye. Bye. Bye.
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