Nursing Unit to close by theend of May

The Slievemore Nursing Unit - with a total staff complement of 31 - was deemed by the RQIA to be providing the same model of care as a nursing home and thus was unclassifiable under its criteria.

The Western Trust decided the current unit does not and could not be made to meet the required nursing home standard. Thus it’ll close by the end of May.

Thirty-one staff currently employed there will be redeployed to other Trust facilities. Patients in the unit will be prioritised for nursing care placements.

Alan Corry Finn the Western Trust’s Director of Nursing and Primary Care and Older People’s Services said relatives of patients and staff were informed of the closure of the Slievemore Unit at a meeting on Tuesday, March 12. “At the meeting we informed relatives and staff that the unit will close no later than 31 May 2013,” he stated.

“We appreciate that this will be difficult time for our patients and their families and the Trust is committed to supporting them through the transition between care facilities.”