SNAG 'deeply concerned' about proposal to move Dr Giraldi service users to Tangier Views

The Supported Needs Action Group says it is deeply concerned about a proposal to move Dr Giraldi Home service users to Tangier Views, in order to expand the St Bernadette’s Centre.

The Dr Giraldi Home is a residential and care facility located above St Bernadette’s. The group’s comments follow a Town Hall meeting held last week.

SNAG says the Minister for Care, Gemma Arias Vasquez, advised service users and their families that the move would be temporary, lasting three years.

The NGO says its primary concern is the suitability of Tangier Views and how residents would be able to get to town. The Minister reportedly told the group that the Care Agency would provide transport, but SNAG claims the agency has a poor track record in this regard. It also says there was a lack of detail in the Minister’s plans.

SNAG acknowledges that there are long-standing problems at St Bernadette's, but claims the Government is attempting to solve one issue while creating a far greater one. It stresses that uprooting vulnerable residents and then moving them back would cause anxiety that cannot be underestimated.

The group also claims the Government has taken a “take it or leave it” approach, and that shifting the burden onto residents and families is not acceptable. It says the responsibility for finding an adequate solution rests squarely with the Care Agency and the Government.