The Waterford Hospice Movement say it's unlikely that the new South East Palliative Care Centre will open before the middle of next year.
The new unit, consisting of the ground and first floor of the new 5 storey Dunmore Wing at University Hospital Waterford was officially handed over to the HSE in April of this year.
However to date, no budget has been provided to the HSE in relation to staffing and operational costs.
Chairperson of the movement Danette Connolly says the state of the art centre is fully equipped and ready to go.
STATEMENT FROM WATERFORD HOSPICE MOVEMENT
The chairperson of Waterford Hospice Movement , Danette Connolly ,at the bequest of the board of directors, met this week with the four local representatives in Dáil Éireann in a bid to have the case for the opening of the new South East Palliative Care Centre/ hospice unit brought before the Minister for Health.
The new unit, consisting of the ground and first floor of the new 5 storey Dunmore Wing at University Hospital Waterford was officially handed over to the HSE in April of this year.
However to date, no budget has been provided to the HSE in relation to staffing and operational costs, despite the fact that budget and operational projections were prepared and submitted in advance of the completion of the building. This state of the art centre, fully equipped and ready to go, lies empty and closed.
Until such time as a budget is agreed and allocated, the HSE staff recruitment cannot commence and this process when started, can take up to six months. This means that it is unlikely that the Hospice will be open before mid 2020.
The Directors of Waterford Hospice movement clg have expressed their great disappointment at this delay in view of the enormous efforts that have been made by the their volunteers, their fundraisers and the people of Waterford and South Kilkenny in providing donations for a home care service for the past 30 years and the additional commitment made to donate 6 million to the cost of the new hospice unit, 4.4 million of which has already been transferred to the HSE.
We are calling on the public to voice their dissatisfaction with this current situation and make their elected representatives aware that the people of the south east are tired of being ignored and neglected in relation to health care provision in general and now sadly end of life care.
