The decision to close St Brigid's Hospital in Carrick-on-Suir was made without public consultation.
So says local solicitor Susan Mullins, a member of the Save St Brigid's Action Group.
As part of the group, she travelled to the Dáil recently with a petition to re-open the hospital, which provided palliative, respite and convalescent care.
The group has collected 11,000 signatures on the petition.
Speaking to WLR News, Susan says following the closure of the hospital in 2020, 30 staff were redeployed.
"It was done under the cover in the veil of Covid when people couldn't protest," she said, adding that staff were only told on the day.
Susan says their next step is to have sit-down talks with the HSE and the health committee.
From there, she hopes the group can enter talks with them. She would like to sit down with the committee and see what can be done.
"If they will tell us what they want us to do to keep open what wasn't broken, people will do it," Susan said.
She said this speaking from experience, highlighting all of the fundraising the locals have done for the hospital in the past.
"They paid for all new doors, all new windows. They paid for the palliative care room," she said.
Susan believes locals would "rush" to fundraise if it meant reopening the hospital.
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