HSE denies conflict of interest in buying Cork property from health chief's relative

Selling parties of proposed new facility were the sister and brother-in-law of the acting head of mental health services for the Cork/Kerry region

The Carrigaline sale had emerged as problematic given the decision by the HSE to close the established community mental health service at Owenacurra in Midleton (above), a decision vigorously opposed by locals and the families of residents at the facility. 

The HSE has said it was aware of a potential conflict of interest on a property it purchased in Cork “at a very early point” in the procurement process.

The executive bought Glenwood House in Carrigaline, a former B&B, for €750,000 in January 2021 with the intention of converting it into a community-based mental health centre.

However, it has since emerged the selling parties were the sister and brother-in-law of the acting head of mental health services for the Cork/Kerry region.

Fourteen months after the sale, Glenwood House remains vacant and unused and is not expected to go live as a mental health facility before June of this year, after becoming mired in planning difficulties regarding its conversion into a health facility.

A note from the HSE to the Public Accounts Committee, which had been asked to investigate the sale, said:  “Further to commentary in the media, the service wishes to be very clear in relation to the process followed.

At a very early point, a potential conflict of interest was declared by a senior manager in the CHO Mental Health service, as that person had a family connection to this property.

“On the service side, and to ensure there was no conflict of interest, all matters in relation to the proposed purchase were dealt with by a different senior manager and the Chief Officer,” the note states, adding the senior manager in question "had no involvement in the process”.

Previously, the HSE told the Irish Examiner that “all appropriate processes” had been followed in the sale.

The Carrigaline sale had emerged as problematic given the decision by the HSE to close the established community mental health service at Owenacurra in Midleton, a decision vigorously opposed by locals and the families of residents at the facility. 

Closing Owenacurra will leave the entirety of the East Cork region, a catchment area of 94,000 people, without a dedicated 24-hour mental health service centre.

Nine of the remaining residents of Owenacurra, many of whom have lived there for decades, have been offered replacement places at the Carrigaline facility, 30km away, when it eventually opens.

The HSE has acknowledged that the Carrigaline facility was not intended as a direct replacement for Owenacurra but rather is expected to service the locality south of Cork City, despite the fact the majority of its residents are set to transfer from the East Cork centre.

When Glenwood House was first listed for sale it was at a ‘price to sell’ guide of €750,000, which is exactly the price at which it was eventually sold to the HSE.

“The property was purchased by the HSE in the context of Covid-19 and the significant shortcomings in the stock of residential services in Cork,” the briefing note to PAC states.

This proposal formed part of the emergency planning of the mental health services Cork-Kerry Community Healthcare. The purchase provided additional space for our residents with single en-suite rooms and a high standard of social space.

In the same note, the HSE reiterated that the closure of Owenacurra, initially slated for last October, must still proceed given the age of the building, the restricted size of the site, and the “unacceptable deficiencies in the accommodation”.