Concerns over uncertain future for Bantry nursing home 

The future is uncertain for an Aperee Living nursing home in Bantry, less than a year after one of the company’s nursing homes in Belgooly was shut.

Cork South West TD and Independent Ireland leader Michael Collins told The Echo that a receiver was appointed early last week to the Bantry nursing home.

He said: “I met with the reciever on Thursday in Bantry, my concerns and the concerns of Councillor Danny Collins and Councillor Patrick Gerard Murphy are the workers, the residents, and the building staff completing works on the centre.

“He assured me that the residents are not to be moved for the time being, it is still a nursing home, so staff and the building contractors will continue to be paid also.”

The receiver is to appoint an auctioneer and a PPIM (person participating in management) to carry out the function of running a nursing home, but Mr Collins said “at the end of the day, this will be sold to the highest bidder”.

It is a 50-bed nursing home with 35 residents currently living there, as the builders undertake works to bring the building up to Hiqa standards and allow its full capacity to be utilised.

Public meeting 

Dozens of people attended a public meeting organised by Mr Collins last Monday.

“We had a fine gathering,” he said. 

“Families of residents and some staff attended — the staff and the families are both angry that they were not properly consulted on this.”

Mr Collins is to meet the receiver again this morning and bring forward the issues raised at the meeting, including that if it closes, will residents be moved far away from family, as the nursing home currently caters to people in the most remote parts of Cork.

He said: “There’s people from Beara peninsula, Mizen peninsula, and Sheep’s Head peninsula — it’s the only nursing home covering all that area.

“There’s a nursing home in Drimoleague, but it is well full and can’t take 35 new residents, so the worry is that if this is closed, similar to Belgooly, patients will be sent here there and everywhere.

“They’ll be given no choice, it’s either go home or take the bed you’re given, whether it’s five miles away or 55 miles away, so we’re really hoping that the building will be sold to nursing home buyers,” he said.

Aperee Living was contacted for comment.