INISHOWEN TD Charlie
McConalogue has today expressed his "shock and
sadness" at the deaths of six elderly patients at
Nazareth House nursing home in Fahan.
A HSE investigation is underway into the cause of
the deaths, believed to be linked to an outbreak of
a suspected "respiratory-type" virus at the care
home, near Buncrana. Five of the deaths are
understood to have taken place in a cluster over the
past five days.
Deputy McConalogue said: “This is an extremely
serious situation and it must be fully investigated
as thoroughly and as quickly as possible. I
understand just how alarming this is for the
community but it is important to remember that 39
residents at Nazareth Home are receiving the best
possible care at this time."
The Gleneely-based representative expressed his
sympathies to the families affected and said the
staff of the nursing home deserved "enormous
credit".
“My thoughts and prayers are with patients, families
and staff at the Nazareth House. Enormous credit is
due to the staff for their continued commitment and
hard work in these extremely difficult
circumstances. I also wish to commend the local
health workers who are providing extra assistance
with treatment and dealing with the concerns of
locals who are understandably upset by what has
happened.
"At the moment, we do not know the full facts of the
situation. While I welcome the fact that the HSE
moved quickly when it was informed of the situation,
the most important thing now is that a thorough
investigation is completed as quickly as possible to
establish exactly what happened and provide
reassurance to the remaining patients and their
families.
"The Minister for Health James Reilly must also do
everything in his power to minimise the risk of a
similar tragedy at any healthcare facility in the
country in the future," added the Fianna Fáil
deputy. |
