The Joint Committee on Health has written to the Minister of State in the Department of Health to express dissatisfaction and concern that the Owenacurra Centre in East Cork is to be closed.
The Committee has called on Minister Mary Butler to reverse the decision as a matter of urgency as they say it is in contravention of the Sharing the Vision policy which seeks to locate mental health services within communities.
The development comes after a delegation from the Health committee visited the mental health facility in Midleton last month following a request by patients' families.
The families requested the visit following a controversial decision to close the long-term residential care facility after the HSE said the building was no longer fit for the 19 residents, many of whom have lived there for over 20 years
The Committee also described the evidence presented by the HSE to justify the closure as "unconvincing" and said it raises concerns about the ad-hoc nature of the decision-making process relating to capital infrastructure of mental health facilities.
