Invest in people, not buildings

THERE’S been widespread debate over the past few months about the location of primary care centres and the criteria used to decide where these centres should be built.

Initially, areas of deprivation were top of the agenda, those parts of the country most in need of healthcare services. Recently, the waters were muddied as to why certain areas were selected and others not. The original criteria seemed to change and there were accusations of political strokes.

It appeared deprivation was no longer paramount when selecting suitable sites. The brouhaha has left many cynical about the whole process. Here in Blackpool, on the northside of Cork city, we are particularly cynical. Despite the HSE clearly stating that Blackpool is a priority area for primary care investment, it was not included in the list that Health Minister James Reilly announced as likely future locations for primary care centres.