Start date set for construction of new Primary Care Centre in Offaly town
A start date has been set for the construction of a new Primary Care Centre in an Offaly town.
Construction work is scheduled to begin on the long-awaited Birr Primary Care Centre during the final quarter of this year.
A number of HSE managers briefed local councillors on Monday during a meeting of Birr Municipal District and confirmed that the site will be located in the field behind the Outdoor Education Centre on Roscrea Road.
Joe Ruane of the HSE told the meeting that it has been “a long hard road to get the green light for this development but it's now come through, which is excellent news.” The councillors agreed, all of the one opinion that the town has to have a PCC.
Mr Ruane added that it's expected to finish the construction work during the second quarter of 2024. He said the dates are subject to change but they are of a conservative nature and therefore are likely to be met.
“When the construction is completed,” said Mr Ruane, “then the HSE will move in and take over the building.”
Cllr Clare Claffey said she was very grateful to Joe and his fellow officers for keeping everyone up to date.
“It is very important for us in Birr District,” she remarked, “that the Primary Care Centre is up and running very quickly. We don't want any more delays. While you say the timeframe is conservative, it does seem to me to be too long. Can we please reduce it? The town cannot have a PCC soon enough.”
Cllr Claffey welcomed the fact there will be diagnostic services (that is, services provided to find out the nature and cause of a condition, injury or illness) in the PCC. “This will take some of the pressure off Tullamore Hospital.”
She said Banagher Primary Care Centre is a top class facility and locals are very happy with it.
She added that it is unacceptable that Birr doesn't have a Midoc facility.
“I was told that there will be a space reserved in the Birr PCC for a possible Midoc facility, if it's given the go-ahead. It is no joke having to travel to Tullamore for an out of hours GP service. I had to do it recently with a sick child, late at night. I would have been happier if the option of travelling a shorter distance to Birr had been available.”
Cllr John Carroll said they are all wondering if the work on the new PCC will in fact be finished during the second quarter of 2024.
Joe Ruane said there won't be an MRI in the Diagnostics section.
Cllr John Clendennen pointed out that the GPs in Birr have told him that logistically it's not possible to run a Midoc in Birr. He said the town is “crying out” for a PCC and the project is four years behind because of one reason or another.
“Some people have said to me that they feel that the PCC site is too far out from centre of the town.”
Joe Ruane stressed that there won't be any reduction of services in Birr's Community Nursing Unit because of the creation of a PCC. He said the reports some time ago that the Community Nursing Unit would close when the Primary Care Centre opened were fake news. “These reports were a lie. The distress they caused residents and staff was shocking.
“There are no plans for a Midoc service in Birr,” he added. “The focus is on the existing services that are there and on the PCC.
“The PCC's distance from the town centre is similar to the distance from the centres of the Primary Care Centres in Tullamore, Mullingar and Athlone. We in the HSE are very happy with the location in Birr.”
Stephane Duclot, Director of Services, thanked everyone for their frank and honest discussion.
“I look forward to seeing the project progress as quickly as possible through the planning process.”
Another of the HSE managers, Theresa Kennedy, said the PCC will include the following sections: Mental Health Community Services; HSE Staff Office Accommodation; Dental Department; Public Health Nursing; Physiotherapy; Occupational Therapy; Allied Team Facilities; Speech and Language Therapy; HSE External Equipment Store.
The HSE has engaged solicitors and instructed them to commence work on the legal documents. This legal documentation will run concurrently with design development and the planning process.
There will be a Developer pre-planning meeting with the County Council during the second quarter of this year. The planning application will be lodged in the third quarter of 2022; and it's expected that planning will be granted in the fourth quarter. The initial draft scheme layout plans for the project were issued on January 22nd, 2022. The HSE Board gave its approval to the project in October 2021.