The Gaeltacht community of Cléire, an island located 12km off the coast of west Cork, have claimed that a lack of permanent nursing support has left its population in vulnerable position were a medical emergency to occur.
The crossing from the mainland at Baltimore to Cléire takes approximately 50 minutes by ferry and islanders claim that basic healthcare has become increasingly unreliable over the past decade.
According to a recent submission made by the people of the island to the Health Service Executive, since January of this year, 13 medical evacuations have taken place from Cléire with no nursing support present to provide medical care in the majority of these cases.
Five medical evacuations were recorded from Cléire over a 10-day period last month, including one airlift, with no nurse present.
Three sudden deaths occurred on the island over the past 18 months and on all three occasions, no nurse was present.
HSE notifications from the past 18 months revealed over 51% of days recorded no full-time nursing cover
Two further evacuations occurred on the 11-12 September, again with no nursing cover available.
HSE notifications from the past 18 months revealed over 51% of days recorded had no full-time nursing cover.
The situation reached a critical point this summer, with no nursing cover available for the entire month of July with only five days recorded in August where nursing cover was available.
According to the submission made by islanders to the HSE, more than 14,000 passengers visited Cléire by ferry during the months of July and August.
The current situation is said to be particularly precarious for the island’s elderly residents.
It is claimed some residents now face a 10-hour round trip to the mainland for assessments and basic treatments which has been previously available on the island.
According to the submission made to the HSE, it is also claimed the current nursing provision arrangement does not provide for the full functions of a public health nurse, meaning home visits, preventative care and other key community services are unavailable.
Niamh Ní Dhrisceoil said the appointment of a full-time public health nurse on Cléire is essential
According to islander Niamh Ní Dhrisceoil, the appointment of a full-time public health nurse on Cléire is essential alongside the need for reliable contingency arrangements and regular doctor visits.
“We deserve the same access to basic healthcare and urgent action is needed before a preventable tragedy occurs,” she said.
“The current level of service coverage is not sufficient to meet the needs of the island, and the scope of the service available is very limited.”
A statement issued by HSE South-West this evening said it acknowledges the importance of a public health nursing post to the Cléire community and maintaining appropriate nursing cover for island communities remains a priority.
The statement outlined that multiple efforts have been made to recruit a permanent public health nurse for the island since the resignation of a public health nurse in 2022 and another recruitment campaign is progressing through HSE recruitment processes.
It went on to state that arrangements are in place to support the Cléire community when there is no nurse on duty on the island.
Local GPs and SouthDoc are notified of any periods when nursing cover is unavailable.
Individuals who would normally contact the public health nurse are advised to contact their GP, or dial 999/112 in the event of an emergency.
On days when there is no nurse on the island, requests for nursing care from existing patients are assessed according to urgency, and local arrangements are made to ensure that priority cases receive appropriate nursing support.