Can the Minister of State imagine a person's husband or partner being diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease in their late 50s, then having to search for a nursing home with an Alzheimer's-specific dementia unit when they are 65, and just when they have settled into their new home, they are being evicted? Can the Minister of State imagine that? Can he imagine a person whose mother had passed away over the summer then being told their father has to find a new home after eight years of living in the Sarsfield Court dementia-specific unit? This is a unit where the patients are loved and cared for by the staff and their families do not want to see them moved from it.

A man in his 80s contacted me. His wife is in the Sarsfield Court dementia unit. He lives not far from it, and he walks to it or gets a spin from his neighbours, brilliant neighbours, who bring him there. He goes there four or five times a week now. If his wife is evicted from Sarsfield Court on 10 or 12 October, he might not be able to visit her that often. He might only be able to go once or two times a week. This is the love of his life. Margaret is her name. She worked in Sarsfield Court for 20 years, and when she went in there as a patient, the nurses and staff brought her in with the love of friends. It was like a family. Her husband, Eddie, tells a beautiful story about when they were together. They are 50 years married this year and 54 years together, and now Margaret is facing eviction. This is the love of Eddie's life and at a time when she needs him, he is trying to stand up for her because he believes that to move her and the other seven or eight patients out of Sarsfield Court is wrong.

Can the Minister of State explain to me why the Government is closing the Sarsfield Court dementia unit? The reality for people who have family members there is that not one of them wants to see their family members moved. Sarsfield Court has about 99 acres of green fields and trees. This is a beautiful setting. I know the Minister of State is going to tell me the mental health unit is being moved down from the second floor because those patients do not have access to the outside area but that is the HSE's fault. There is another unit very close to it in Sarsfield Court. You could puck a sliotar to it. It is unit five. If a small bit of investment was put into it, the mental health patients could go in there and the dementia patients could stay in their home.

This is their home. Moving these patients is an insult to their families. It is an insult to people who have worked all their lives and now they are suffering from Alzheimer's disease and dementia, which is an absolutely horrible disease. The State, the Minister of State and his Government are evicting people from their homes. How can the Minister of State stand over it? I plead with him today to stop the closure of Sarsfield Court dementia unit in Glanmire. I could fill that unit today.

The Minister of State will know that I have also raised the issue of Heather House, where a new unit is to be opened with 17 beds. What is the point of closing 16 beds in Glanmire to open 17 in St. Mary's? We need more beds for people with dementia and Alzheimer's disease. Since 1954, Sarsfield Court has been a hospital. That is as long as I have been alive.

Slowly but surely, the Government and the HSE have taken the decision to wind it down. I am looking for answers as to why.

I thank Deputy Gould for raising this important matter. As he is aware, unit 1 in St. Stephen's Hospital in Glanmire, County Cork, is a designated centre for older people registered by HIQA. Eight residents are residing in the dementia-specific unit. Unit 1 is the only older persons' residential facility on the grounds of St. Stephen's campus because all other operational units on the site are being utilised to deliver a range of services under the registration of the Mental Health Commission.

HSE south has advised me it has taken a decision to deregister unit 1 as an older persons' residential facility with HIQA, with a view to re-registering the unit with the Mental Health Commission to better co-ordinate the mental health services on site because they will now come under the registration of the Mental Health Commission. The Deputy spoke about his constituents. I fully appreciate this is a difficult time for residents of unit 1 and their families. The HSE has advised me that all eight residents in unit 1 will be transferred to residential care facilities deemed to meet their particular care needs, preferences and choices. Furthermore, all residents will also transfer to the new accommodation in a phased and planned manner.

This will be done very much in consultation with the residents and their families. Nothing will happen until they are satisfied with the move. The HSE has advised me that it is engaged in a comprehensive process of engagement, consultation and planning with residents, family and staff, which commenced on 28 July. Once all residents and their families have had an opportunity to look at alternative accommodation options and a full assessment of each resident's individual care needs has taken place, the HSE will commence transferring residents to their new homes in a safe and respectful manner.

The HSE expects that the eight residents will transfer to older persons' residential facilities in the Cork city and east Cork area. Significant works have taken place in recent years to provide additional places for older people in the south west, allowing HSE South West to provide the best possible care for older people in high-quality environments. These include the new state-of-the-art 50-bed Midleton community nursing unit, which opened recently, and the 105 beds in St. Finbarr's community nursing unit in Cork city, which is expected to open in quarter 4 and will include 30 new dementia-specific beds. This is in addition to what the Deputy has already referenced.

A new 17-bed dementia-specific unit in Heather House in Gurranabraher in Cork city has recently been registered with HIQA and is expected to open in quarter 4 of 2026. It is something I have taken a personal interest in. I want to see it opened. I agree with the Deputy that we need additional dementia-specific beds. Seventeen will come on stream in Heather House and another 30 will be available in the new unit in St. Finbarr's in Cork city, which is scheduled to open in quarter 4.

The opening of new community nursing units is an absolute priority for me, the Department of Health and the HSE. I am absolutely committed, along with the Department and the HSE, to ensure that the care needs, preferences and choices of the constituents the Deputy represents are fully respected. I hope their transfer to new state-of-the-art residential facilities happens in a phased, safe and considered manner with the full consent of all residents and in line with the wishes of their families.

I want to be clear about what the Minister of State said. He said that nothing will happen until the families are satisfied and the situation has been worked through. I have met the families privately and there has been a public meeting. The families do not want their loved ones to be moved out of the unit. They fear for the health of their loved ones if they are moved. They were given a list of places in Cork and Kerry where they were advised to take their loved ones. Why would someone leave a place where they are safe, looked after and minded? It is not just a bed. The dementia unit is specifically for dementia patients and is their home.

The Minister of State and HSE have not answered my questions. Why are dementia beds being closed when there is a dementia bed crisis across the State, but especially in Cork? Will the Minister of State give me one reason that is happening? Families are looking for answers from him, but no one will give them answers. They do not want their loved ones to be moved. There is talk about being moved and transferred and care needs. We know their care needs are being met in Sarsfield Court. Why would patients be moved when they are being looked after?

There are eight empty beds in Sarsfield Cork right now where eight people with dementia could be cared for by staff. People love the staff there. The Minister of State said nothing is going to happen until the families are happy. They are not patients; they are residents. This is their home. I ask for a commitment from the Minister of State to keep the unit open. Will he explain why he and his Government are closing dementia beds? The families cannot explain it. Will he explain how this affects the rights of these citizens as human beings? They are being evicted. It is completely wrong.

Once again, I thank Deputy Gould for raising this important matter. I appreciate it is a difficult time for the residents and their families. As already stated, HSE South West has advised me it has taken the decision to deregister the dementia-specific unit for older persons in St. Stephen's campus hospital, with a view to re-registering the unit with the Mental Health Commission. I reiterate that the HSE is engaged in a comprehensive process of engagement, consultation and planning with residents, family and staff to arrange alternative accommodation for all eight residents residing in unit 1.

Residents and their families continue to engage with the general manager with responsibility for unit 1. The general manager remains available to meet any resident or family member to address any queries they may have. As I said, I assure the Deputy, the residents and their families that the HSE will only commence the transfer of residents to their new homes in a safe and respectful manner once all residents and families have had an opportunity to look at alternative accommodation and a full assessment of each resident's individual care needs has taken place.

The transfer of residents will depend on the assessed care needs of each resident and their choice and preferences. I welcome the assurance from the HSE that it expects the current residents in the south-west area to be transferred to older persons' residential facilities in east Cork and Cork city. A new 50-bed unit has opened in the community nursing unit in Midleton. There will be 30 dementia-specific beds and a new community nursing unit is expected to open in St. Finbarr's. Moreover, a new 17-bed dementia-specific unit, Heather House, in Gurranabraher in Cork city has recently been registered and is expected to open in quarter 4. Once again, I reiterate that the HSE, the Department and I are absolutely committed to ensuring that all eight residents can be moved to a new home of their choosing in a safe and timely manner.