HSE denies claims that rehab unit in psychiatric facility is to close

THE Health Service Executive (HSE) Mid-West has rejected a claim by SIPTU that a rehabilitation unit at St Joseph’s Psychiatric Hospital is being shut down without any plans for an alternative facility.

The HSE accused SIPTU of deliberately causing alarm among psychiatric patients and their families.

A HSE spokesman said: “The facts, as known to consultants, nurses, and everybody working in St Joseph’s, are that Ashleigh Lodge is not closing, it is being upgraded and improved and rehabilitation services are being increased.”