County Council agrees that physio service ‘must stay’ in Longford

decision on the future of the physiotherapy service St Joseph's Care Centre will be made this week according to Taoiseach Micheál Martin, however, local councillors have insisted the physiotherapy department must be fully retained at its Longford town site.

The physiotherapy department at St Joseph’s Care Centre has had to move location from their centre on the Dublin Road in the county town into a building that is due to be demolished in six months due to ongoing works.

Staff were notified of the possibility that they could be moving to Athlone or Mullingar which would mean that the service would no longer be available locally and the issue was discussed at last week's monthly local authority meeting.

Fine Gael Councillor Peggy Nolan, who sent her apologies and was not present at the meeting, has led calls for the service to remain in Longford in recent weeks.

Several of her colleagues in Longford County Council commended her for highlighting the issue.

Fianna Fáil Councillor Seamus Butler stated the works could take two years.

"It's great to see a Longford company doing the work and at the same time I don't believe a move to Athlone or Mullingar would be on the cards. "If it did I think we would have to get TII (Transport Infrastructure Ireland) rural transport to have a shuttle bus to bring them to the location for people to use regularly.

"But having said that there is no reason and no lack of suitable space in Longford," he added.

Local Fine Gael Cllr Gerry Hagan said he agreed with Cllr Butler.

"My great concern is that if this is taken out of the county for 18-months or two years, we don't know and if this is lost to Longford it could be lost forever, that is my real fear.

"I'm not scaremongering when I say that, there are other services that were taken out that have not been replaced.

"There are other departments such as education which I work in myself which provide portacabins for extra classrooms and space for many thousands of students on an annual basis nationwide."

Cllr Hagan insisted there is lots of space on the site.

"It would not be a matter of contacting TII to try and get a bus service.

"A lot of these people that are using this service are elderly people with hip replacements and one operation or the other.

"It needs to remain in Longford and on the site at St Joseph's on the Dublin Road, people are well used to attending their physiotherapy appointments there.