HOSPITAL CAMPAIGNERS are planning a second major protest in Abbeyleix, Co Laois, over the proposal to close a community nursing home.
About 5,000 protesters took to the streets of Abbeyleix last November when the HSE announced plans to close the unit and move 28 long-stay residents.
The HSE agreed to quash the closure order and engage in consultation with stakeholders.
However, citing frustration at the lack of progress in relation to the consultation, campaigners are now mounting a larger protest in Abbeyleix on April 29th.
A spokesman for the Abbeyleix and District Hospital Action Committee, Gary O’Keeffe, is expecting a massive turnout.
“This is going to be as big as possible. The idea is to get every club, organisation and parish from the west to the east involved,” he said.
Mr O’Keeffe said no consultation had yet taken place and he accused the HSE of “trying to keep us quiet and placate us until they get us to a critical number of beds”.
“No matter what the wolves in sheep’s clothing are saying, there seems to be an absolute commitment to close it,” he added.
According to a HSE spokeswoman, a “generic process” – applicable to all locations where consultation on the closure of long-stay units was taking place – was being finalised.
“A lot of work is going into finalising this standardised national approach which, given the importance of the process, is essential to ensure that a comprehensive and robust template is available to guide staff,” she said.