Nursing homes residents “left isolated” by State
Nursing home residents were left isolated by the State in the early days of the COVID-19 crisis, according to Nursing Homes Ireland.
CEO Tadhg Daly has told the Dáil Special Committee on COVID-19 Response he was left exasperated by the exclusive focus on acute hospitals.
The Dáil committee has been hearing about the situation in nursing homes, with Mr Daly strongly critical of the Government's initial response.
"There needs to be a greater appreciation that care of the older person is complex."
Soc Dems hit out at “brass neck” Fine Gael over nursing homes
The Social Democrats have accused Fine Gael of trying to “shift the blame” for the nursing homes scandal.
It comes after Louth TD Fergus O'Dowd said “very wealthy” nursing home owners should have done more to pay for Personal Protective Equipment, testing and staff increases.
The Fine Gael backbencher was speaking at the Dáil COVID-19 committee after Nursing Homes Ireland (NHI) warned that residents were left isolated by the State in the early days of the outbreak.
Deputy O’Dowd said the claim was ‘patently untrue’ and said the the sector was made up of “very wealthy companies who complain that the taxpayer isn't doing enough for them."
Nine more COVID-19 patients have died in the Republic taking the national toll to 1,615.
Meanwhile, 37 new cases have been confirmed taking the total in Ireland to 24,735.
The Chief Medical Officer Dr Tony Holohan said 325,795 COVID-19 tests had been carried out around the country by midnight on Monday.
He said more than 30,000 of these were carried out in the past week – with 633 – of 2.1% - coming back positive.
Childcare services say “no meaningful consultation” about reopening
The head of the Federation of Early Childhood Providers says there has been no meaningful consultation with them on re-opening their services.
It comes as a majority of childcare providers say they will not re-open on June 29th, when the Government intends to start a phased resumption.
The survey by the Federation of Early Childhood Providers shows the majority of providers have made the decision not to open in phase three.
Some 609 providers took part in the survey - which found 60% would definitely not be re-opening, 28% were unsure, with just 12% saying that they would open.
The Department of Education says a new portal for Leaving Certificate students to register to receive calculated grades has been stress tested, to make sure it doesn't crash.
Some 61,000 students are expected to register on the portal from 10.00am on Tuesday.
The system will remain open for registrations until 10.00pm on Thursday.
All Leaving Certificate and Leaving Certificate Applied students are required to register.
