Roscrea's Dean Maxwell “may be gone as we know it”

After over a decade of fighting for the retention of long-term care beds in Roscrea's only public nursing home, it appears no avenue has been left unexhausted and no feasible solution can be found, Roscrea's Community Development Council's leader said this week.

Instead, people seeking a public nursing home bed in Roscrea who wish to stay in their hometown surrounded by their family and community will be forced to move to a new nursing home in Nenagh.

Now community leaders are calling on the people of Roscrea and surrounding areas to support public demonstrations and express their dissatisfaction with the government's plans.

John Lupton, Chairman of Roscrea Community Development Council (RCDC) told the Tribune this week he fears that recent developments in the saga have cemented “the end of the Dean Maxwell as we know it”.

Further to a zoom meeting last week between the Minister for Older People Mary Butler, Oireachtas Representatives, local councillors and community representatives, Mr. Lupton said “it is clear that the HSE’s position with regard to the Dean Maxwell is that the long term stay facility will not be carried forward into the future”.

Mr. Lupton said the Minister favours a proposal for a Dementia Unit, Respite facility and a Community Resource Centre, but needs community backing for such a proposal before submitting application for funding the change.
Mr. Lupton emphasised the plans will not include a long term stay facility and called on the public to support potential public demonstrations.

“From my own perspective, that of RCDC’s, and I believe, many in the community of Roscrea, the Dean Maxwell primarily represents a long-term Community Nursing Home facility and it's loss would effectively represent the loss of the Dean Maxwell as we know it.

“The facilities proposed by the Minister are very welcome, if they were to materialise, but if they are to materialise at the expense of losing the long-term stay facility, it would, I believe, be at too high of a price”, Mr. Lupton said.

Mr. Lupton said the Minister has made it clear that the long term stay facility will cease and that she suggests that if the community does not support her plan “the community of Roscrea, in the context of Dean Maxwell, may be left with nothing”.

“From RCDC’s perspective the community must fight for the retention of a long term stay facility and such facility must be an integral part of any proposed development. The principle that people in their twilight years must be entitled to the dignity of continuing to live in their place of belonging is a human right and if it is abandoned then it is gone, not only for this generation, but, for generations to come. Hence the whole community of Roscrea would be diminished as a result and I believe that we cannot stand idly by and allow such a thing to happen.

“It appears that unless there is a political assurance and commitment that such a course will not be allowed to happen that the people of Roscrea will have no choice but to come together in public demonstration and make it clear to the Government that the people of Roscrea demand that their older people of today, and of future generations, require more than beds in their old age.

“They require a place of belonging within their own community such as the Dean Maxwell Home has been for very many Roscrea people over the last 50 years,” Mr. Lupton told the Tribune.