Month: March 2013

TOMMY Hayes has been at the forefront of traditional lrish music for more than three decades, and now the popular percussionist is leading the way in music therapy.

The founding member of Stockton’s Wing is not only working in the field of music therapy but he is also a special guest lecturer at the MA Music Therapy Programme in the Irish World Academy University of Limerick.

This is the first programme of its kind in Ireland and the only degree in the country leading to a professional qualification in music therapy.

Now the Clare composer and musician is working almost full time as a music therapist in carious settings including medical and educational.

He works as a freelance music therapist with a number of clients on a private basis and has extensive experience of working in the areas of autism, mental health, physical disability and adolescence and has a particular interest in guided imagery and music practice.

Tommy also supervises trainee therapists in the Limerick and Clare areas.

He qualified as a

music therapist in

2002 having com

pleted the MA Mu

sic Therapy pro

gramme.

Qualified music

therapists use the

unique character

istics of music in

musical interaction

to support people

who have additional

needs because of

medical, psychologi

cal, physical or emo

tional issues.

The course requires

a high level of music

skill on entry.

Experience in paid or volunteer work with people who have a disability or experience some sort of social disadvantage/exclusion is required.

A NORTH Clare cheese producer claims that they have been placed “under the microscope” by the authorities because they continue to use non-pasteurised milk in their cheese.

The Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI) issued a warning last Friday that E.coli had been found in a block of Kilshanny Cheese. Traces of E.coli O157 were found to be present in a block of Gouda Herb Cheese produced by the company.

A spokesperson from the North Clare company told The Clare People yesterday that Kilshanny Cheese has been targeted because they refuse to use pasteurised cheese.

“We are under the microscope all the time.

“They want us to use pasteurised milk and they are making it as difficult as possible for us to continue to operate. I am still eating the cheese, I know many of our customers are still eating the cheese and they are fine.

“Cheese was made without being pasteurised for hundreds and hundreds of years. I have been operating here for 30 years and I have never once had an issue,” said a spokesperson for Kilshanny Cheese.

“The milk is all sourced from my neighbour who runs a fantastic operation.

“I can literally push the tank over to collect the milk so there are no food miles or anything like that.

“I was producing cheese here for 10 years before I saw anybody [inspectors]. Now they are here every month.”

According to the Food Safety Authority of Ireland, the bacteria was found in a batch of cheese which was produced in September of last year and which has been sold by retailers in Clare and in Limerick Milk Market. Kilshanny Farmhouse Cheese has been ordered by the Department of Agriculture to withhold placing any further batches on the market and the FSAI has warned consumers not to eat the implicated cheese due to the possible presence of E.coli

Tests continue to be carried out on the entire stock of Kilshanny Cheese and a company spokesperson hopes that the cheese will be back on the market again soon.

THREE well-known Ennis landmarks will be illuminated in green light during St Patrick’s Week, Ennis Town Council has confirmed.

St Flannan’s College, the Daniel O’Connell monument and Ennis Courthouse will be joining the Pyramids of Giza, the Christ the Redeemer statue in Rio de Janeiro, Sydney Opera House, and dozens of other landmarks and iconic sites around the world as part of Tourism Ireland’s annual ‘global greening’ initiative.

According to Ger Dollard, Ennis Town Manager, “Clare Local Authorities are delighted to able to support Tourism Ireland’s annual ‘global greening’ initiative, particularly during the year of the Gathering and as a tourism promotional tool to attract visitors to Ireland and particularly through Shannon International Airport.”

Meanwhile, St Patrick’s Day 2013 in Ennis promises to be a major cel- ebration this year with large crowds expected on the streets of the county capital.

The centrepiece of the day’s festivities will be the annual parade, the theme of which is ‘Ennis – A Musical Town’. The parade commences at 11am and will proceed through Club Bridge, Abbey Street, O’Connell Square, O’Connell Street, Barrack Street and terminating in the Market.

The Mayor of Ennis will lead the parade in a horse-drawn carriage, which will be followed by 50 groups representing the many aspects of life in Ennis and County Clare. This year’s parade will also feature the 50-strong St Mary’s Catholic School Marching Band from Phoenix who are travelling to the Clare County capital as part of the 25th anniversary celebration of Ennis’ twinning relationship with the Arizona state capital.

The Mayor of Langenfeld, Frank Schneider, will lead a delegation from Germany to Ennis following on from the establishment of links between Ennis and the German town, which lies between Düsseldorf and Cologne.

Special traffic management arrangements will be in place involving road/street closures, restricted access to the parade route and traffic diversions. Gardaí will be on point duty on the day. The co-operation of the public is requested and vehicle owners are asked to observe the road/street closures which will be in place from 8am to 2.30pm.

TRIBUTES have been paid to the late Seamus Mullane, a man warmly recalled yesterday as the “friendly face” of the Court Services in Clare.

Circuit Court judge, Judge Carroll Moran led the tributes to the married father of four and caretaker of Ennis courthouse, who died suddenly on Sunday.

Mr Mullane (49) from Corofin died of natural causes after being out with friends for a cycle on Sunday afternoon.

He previously worked with Aer Lingus and was appointed to the Courts Service in August 2008.

At Ennis Circuit Court on Monday, Judge Moran said, “We’re all in the most profound state of shock at Seamus’s passing. It is completely unexpected. He was very obliging to anyone he met here and he did his work in the most efficient manner.”

On behalf of the Courts Service, Josephine Tone said, “Seamus was a wonderful person. We are all completely devastated by his loss. He was a true friend and colleague.”

In a statement on behalf of the courts service, Ms Tone added, “As Service officer, Seamus was the face of the Courts Service in Ennis. He was well known to all who visited the Courthouse and a role model for all civil servants who deal with the public. He was pleasant, courteous and helpful to all. Ennis Courthouse is a busy and at times a stressful place to visit but Seamus’s friendly face at the public counter put people at ease.”

On behalf of the Clare Law Association, solicitor John Casey said, “It was a privilege to say that Seamus was a friend of mine. I was with him yesterday (Sunday) cycling back from Kilshanny to Ennistymon.” He said, “He did his job and did it well but Seamus’s interest in life was his wife Brid and his four daughters.”

Mr Casey said, “As a person to work for, he was brilliant and he was a true friend and, personally, I will miss him very, very much.”

On behalf of the Clare Bar Association, Michael Collins BL said, “Those of us who have the privilege to work at this courthouse are enriched by the manner in which Seamus carried out his duties.”

On behalf of the State solicitor’s office, solicitor Ashling Casey described Seamus “as a pure gentleman who never, ever allowed me to carry files into court. He would always come out to the car and carry my files”.

Patrick Wallace, County Registrar and Returning Officer, paid tribute to Seamus for his extensive work in the preparation for Elections and referenda.

THE waiting for Doolin residents, local surfers and Clare County Council will be over later today as An Bord Pleanála are set to announce whether the planned new pier for Doolin can go ahead.

A final decision on the development was expected to be announced yesterday, but no nothing was announced by the planning authority. Indeed, this is the fourth promised deadline that An Bord Pleanála have missed so far in 2013 and locals are becoming anxious at the time taken to come to a final decision.

“People are waiting for this decision to be made so their can get on with their lives. Whatever the decision turns out to be, people have been left in limbo,” said ferry operator Eugene Garrihy.

“We were given a date of January 2 [for a decision], then it was February 18. Then it was supposed to be last Friday and then today. I was on the phone to Clare County Council a few minutes ago and there won’t be a decision today.

“There is a lot of frustration locally with the amount of time that this is taking. People just want to get on with their lives.”

The development of a new pier in Doolin had looked set to go ahead two years ago after Clare County Council granted Part 8 planning permission for the development. This decision was challenged by a number of surfing organisation, including the Lahinch based West Coast Surf Club, who believe the damage a famous surfing wave in Doolin.

They applied to An Bord Pleanála to force Clare County Council to complete an Environmental Impact Statement for the project before giving it the green light.

THE HSE West outlined in its Regional Service Plan for 2013, how it will cut waiting times, increase patients’ safety and provide even more services within a budget cut by € 24.46 million.

Authors of the blueprint for the health services in the region, which includes County Clare, admit that its success depends on a lot of “assumptions”.

The services for the rest of this year must be delivered within a € 1.2 billion budget and within the overall employment control limit of 15,750.

This means staffing levels must be cut by 653 people, or four per cent.

Hospital budgets have received a 10 per cent increase, however there are still what the HSE describe as “serious cost containment measures” required, as the increased budget is less than the outturn costs of the hospitals in 2012.

The € 238.344 million 2013 hospitals budget is an increase of 10 per cent on 2012. However, despite this increase, there remains a substantial financial challenge of € 21.759 million for the year. A financial plan, comprising a variety of cost containment initiatives, is in place to deliver breakeven, according to the HSE.

Ann Doherty, CEO Midwest Region Hospitals Group, said “National cost containment initiatives including legislation to increase income from private patients, in addition to general income maximisation, staffing efficiencies, procurement and stock controls, and HSE funding for oncology drugs are all part of the breakeven plan.”

She admitted, however, “This plan is based on a number of assumptions and like all assumptions there are risks that these assumptions may not be realised, e.g. if our assumptions on income are not realised or demand growth is required to maintain our targets, we will then have to find other measures to address this shortfall,” she warned.

“There is a degree of uncertainty at this point regarding our work force as we do not have good visibility on the impacts of the proposed schemes aimed at reducing headcount and the impacts these will have on our services and financial plan. This will be monitored closely so that remedial action can be taken quickly if required.”

Likewise a further € 3.558 million in non-acute services in the mid west must be saved, which is not accounted for in detail in the plan.

It is predicted that the required expenditure in this area for 2013 is € 308.785 million with an available budget of € 305.227 million equating to approximately 1.15 per cent of a pressure on cost against budget.

“This is on the clear assumption that the costs will be maintained at the quarter three 2012 levels or appropriate alternative adjustments will be made where those costs increase,” the HSE stated.

AN ENNIS hotel sold for € 90,000 over it’s reserve at an auction in Dublin on Friday to a Clare businessperson; while a west Clare hotel failed to attract a buyer. The Ashford Court Hotel was sold for € 305,000, with a lot of bidders attracted by the basement bargain reserve of € 215,000.

The distressed property on the Old Mill Road in Ennis was put up for auction by receiver Kieran Wallace of KPMG at the Allsop Space auction. Associate Director of Allsop Space, Robert Hoban, told The Clare People that there was a lot of interest in the 27-bed hotel, set on 0.072 hectares, with “several bidders” taking part in the auction.

All contents were included in the sale of the hotel building, which included a restaurant, bar area and an- cillary accommodation.

A second Clare hotel, The Kilkee Bay Hotel, failed to reach its reserve. The hotel on the Kilrush road has a reserve of € 315,000, and was put up for sale by private citizen.

Mr Hoban said he did not know if there would be a second attempt to sell the property, and he was awaiting instructions from his client.

“Some clients take it off the market, and some times it is re-offered at a lower reserve price,” he said.

The familiar landmark hotel on the Kilrush road into the seaside town has 41-bedrooms together with bar and function room facilities that extend to 18,910.45 square feet.

The two-storey hotel neighbours The Kilkee Bay Leisure Centre, a basketball court, and several rows of apartments/holiday homes.

There is extensive car parking to the front of the property.

AMONG the many targets set out by the HSE West in its blueprint and budget for health services in the region is the target of providing 3.1 million hours of home help to 13,460 people in the HSE West area. Closer examination of the figures, which depend on assumptions and optimistic predictions, shows that this is just an average of 4.4 hours per person per week. A total of 846,780 hours of home help service are to be provided to 3,601 people, resulting in a breakdown of 4.5 hours per week. For many dependents on this service, it will mean fewer hours; for others a little more. The HSE West Service Plan 2013 has a number of targets set out in its plan for the year ahead, including cutting waiting times in the region’s hospitals to six hours, at which point 95 per cent should be discharged or admitted. It also states that no adult will wait more than eight months for an elective procedure, in-patient or day case, and no child will wait more than 20 weeks. It has set the waiting time for Out Patient Department appointments as no longer than one year, while it aims to cut the maximum wait for an “urgent colonoscopy” to four weeks. “No person will wait more than 13 weeks following a referral for routine colonoscopy,” it stated. It also outlines plans to provide 2,238 home care packages; support over 5,000 people with NHSS (Fair Deal) residential care places and provide for a minimum of 589,889 hours of personal assistant and home support services. And while the service must cut its staffing numbers by 4 per cent it has promised to prioritise the recruitment of frontline Primary Care and Mental Health posts and Integrated Care Diabetes Nurse Specialists across the region. The implementation of the Newborn Hearing Screening Programme and preparation of three sites for the National Cancer Control Programme Colorectal Screening initiative is also on the wish list.

THE Garda hierarchy in Clare are in favour of proposals that would see two of the county’s largest Garda stations be closed at night.

Clare’s most senior Garda, Chief Superintendent John Kerin, said that he is 100 per cent behind closing Garda stations in Ennistymon and Killaloe between the hours of 9pm and 7am.

Speaking at last night’s meeting of the Joint Policing Committee (JPC), Chief Supt Kerin said he would rather have a garda out on the beat at night than sitting at a desk.

“I am strongly in favour of Ennistymon and Killaloe being closed to the public between 9pm and 7am. We have a modern communication system in place and at present all 999 calls come into Ennis Garda Station,” he said.

“I don’t want a garda in Ennisty- mon doing paper work at night when he could on a motorbike or in a squad car protecting the area. These closures will put an extra garda on the streets protecting their community at night. I am hoping this will come into place later this year but it won’t come in until April 22 at the earliest.”

Chief Supt Kerin also confirmed that it may take some time for a new inspector to be appointed to Ennistymon.

“I have asked that an inspector be placed in Ennistymon but that cannot be done until people are promoted on the inspectors list,” he said. “I am not very happy that the amalgamation will take place without there being an inspector in Ennistymon. I don’t believe that a superintendent in Kilrush can cover everything in North Clare.”

Following recent comments in the media which likened Ennistymon to a “holiday camp” for gardaí, Chief Supt Kerin said that such comments were not helpful and untrue.

“The people in Ennistymon have dealt with three of four serious murders over the last number of years. They are dealing with people taking their lives at the Cliffs of Moher all the time. There are a series of burglaries and breaking all the time,” he said. “I’m not saying that Ennistymon is any better or worse than other areas but it is certainly not a holiday camp as was suggested by one person in the media recently.”

A CIRCUIT Court judge has expressed concern over the shortage of treatment facilities for people seeking help with drug addiction.

Judge Gerard Keyes was speaking at Ennis Circuit Court on Friday where he presided over three sepa- rate cases where the absence of residential treatment facilities emerged as an issue in sentencing.

In all cases, the accused had suffered or are suffering from serious drug addictions. The men are all aged between 20 and 24.

Sentencing was adjourned in all cases pending reports on the availability of places at residential drug treatment centres.

Judge Keyes said greater availability of drug treatment and rehabilitation facilities would save money for the State in the long term. In the case of one West Clare man described as having a chronic heroin addiction, Judge Keyes said that if the accused went back on the streets without access to appropriate services, “the chances of re-offending because of drug use would be high.”

A letter of support from homeless campaigner Fr Peter McVerry was given to the court in the case of another man who developed an addiction to heroin at the age of 15.

He said, “Fr McVerry is doing what the State should be doing and that is what concerns me.”

Judge Keyes said that the absence of suitable facilities for people seeking to break their addiction to drugs is making difficult for judges to structure sentences appropriately.

He said in one case there was no place to go after prison for one 24year-old man who had benefitted from addiction counselling services in prison.