‘No voice’ for Owenacurra Centre residents in visit by HSE chief

Campaigners against the closure of the mental health facility expressed dismay at the 'stage-managed' visit

The decision to shut the Owenacurra mental health facility in Midleton, Co Cork, was taken by the HSE in June 2021. It has led to a protracted campaign against the closure by residents, their families, and locals.

Campaigners against the closure of the Owenacurra mental health facility in Midleton, Co Cork, have expressed their dismay at the “stage-managed” visit of new HSE chief executive Bernard Gloster to the centre last week.

Mr Gloster travelled to Cork on Thursday for a visit to Mercy University Hospital, followed by a trip to Midleton “to visit mental health community services”, according to a tweet he posted, though he did not specify that he would be travelling to Owenacurra.

However, the remaining residents of the facility and their families say they were not informed that Mr Gloster would be present at the centre on the day, despite the fact a number of people from HSE management were present.

A spokesperson for the HSE said Mr Gloster had a "very helpful visit" in which he met residents and staff to discuss plans.

"He is a very available and engaged CEO and has met, and will continue to meet, individuals and groups including, in particular, those whose engagement with the HSE to date has not been a good experience," they added.

HSE chief executive Bernard Gloster, who visited Owenacurra last week. Picture: Denis Minihane

The decision to shut Owenacurra, which has been a fixture in the East Cork town for the past 30 years, was taken by the HSE in June 2021. It has led to a protracted campaign against the closure by residents, their families, and locals.

The centre remains open some 21 months after it was due to shut its doors, although only six of its previous complement of 20 residents remain in situ.

At a meeting with campaigner and local Independent councillor Liam Quaide and Green TD Neasa Hourigan in late June, Mr Gloster pledged to visit Owenacurra, together with St Stephen's Hospital in rural Glanmire, the site of a proposed new mental health campus.

Mr Quaide said at the time that he felt there had been “genuine engagement” by Mr Gloster with the concerns of the Owenacurra campaign, and that his commitment to visit the centre was a “significant” one.

Following the CEO’s unannounced visit, Mr Quaide said it had been “disappointing to hear that some of the key stakeholders in this closure were not notified of Mr Gloster’s visit”.

“It's hard not to be concerned when a visit of such importance to the people impacted by the closure appears to have been stage-managed to this degree," he said.

"We look forward to re-engaging with Mr. Gloster about the issues," he added.

Long-term Owenacurra resident Michael O’Sullivan said the circumstances of the visit show it is “clear” that those living in the facility and their families “have no voice at all”.

“Despite the HSE's assurances to us that families would now be involved in all decisions, we were never told about Bernard Gloster's visit to Owenacurra,” said Mr O’Sullivan.

How could the head of the HSE visit Owenacurra without talking to the remaining residents and their families, especially those so involved in the campaign against its closure?”

Previously, the Owenacurra campaign had called for Mr Gloster to commission an independent investigation into the standards of some of the alternative placements offered to former residents of Owenacurra, including in mental health facilities in receipt of far inferior compliance scores from the Mental Health Commission than that of Owenacurra.