This article is from page 29 of the 2008-02-12 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 29 JPG
THE people of Shannon are unclear about what services are available to them at the local health clinic.
That was the message delivered at a meeting between town councillors and two Health Service Executive Chie lecim ase
HSE General Manager in Primary, Community and Continuing Care, Chris Monaghan and Senior Execu- tive Officer in Community Services, Esther Conlon, attended a meeting of Shannon Town Council last Tues- day.
Independent councillor Gerry Flynn asked about the frequency or availability of a range of services,
including a family planning clinic, blood testing facilities for the elder- ly, dental, speech therapy and physi- otherapy services.
Cllr Flynn said, “Your PR is a dis- aster. There is no link for me. What I want is somebody at the end of the phone to say there is a problem there. The connection 1s gone.”
He said if the current trend contin- ues, he would be calling for the abo- lition of the HSE and “go back to the way things were”.
Cllr Sean Hillery (FF) said he regularly hears concerns relating to home help for older people.
‘The work is there. The people are in need. Ye must not have enough people to help,” he said.
Mr Monaghan said he agreed, add- ing, “We don’t have any additional re- sources to put in. There are restraints on what we can actually deliver.”
“We simply do not have enough resources to deliver home help pack- ages to everybody who needs them.
“We are developing primary care teams to provide additional services within a local community setting,” said Mr Monaghan.
In December, in response to que- ries from councillors, the Health Service Executive sent a letter to the town council, outlining the range of services on offer at Shannon.
Fianna Fail councillor Geraldine Lambert said she was surprised at how comprehensive the list was.
“If there is a perception out there that services aren’t being provided, that needs to be addressed,’ she CrHOR
However Mr Monaghan said that while he would take on board the queries, he couldn’t comment on 1n- dividual aspects.
“If there are issues or queries, write to us. If we are in a position to an- Swer, we will,” he said.
He said that HSE staff meet Oire- achtas members on a quarterly basis and issues could be raised at those meetings.
Ms Conlon told councillors that ophthalmic, physiotherapy and den- tal services are all carried out at the clinic.