Tag Archives: Covid-19

A Clare Deputy has called for action to clear the backlog of passport applications after new figures revealed 1,000  local people are on a waiting list. New information provided to Fianna Fáil spokesperson on Tourism and Aviation and TD for Clare, Cathal Crowe, show that there is a backlog of 1,000 passport applications in Clare. Out of the overall total, 900 are for renewals with 100 first time applications. Deputy Crowe commented, “The challenge of clearing this backlog will be significant and I hope it can be addressed soon. While obviously the fundamental reason for having a passport is that of international travel, it is not of huge importance right now, nonetheless it is essential that we resume normal service as soon as possible. “The target for vaccination against Covid-19 is for 80 percent of adults to have at least had one jab by the end of June. Similar targets exist across Europe. If these are achieved, it is likely …

IT is widely reported this afternoon that the Cabinet have agreed a timetable for the loosening of Covid-19 restrictions. From May 10 restrictions on intercounty travel are set to be lifted, while hairdressers and barbers are likely to be allowed reopen at this point. Click and collect may also resume, but a more complete reopening of retail is not expected until later next month. While juvenile sport is already back, it’s thought that training for adults in pods of 15 will be allowed to resume, while the numbers of people attending religious services will increase to 50. It’s understood that non essential retail will resume on May 17, while on June 2 hospitality is set to resume, with hotels and B&Bs resuming. Pubs and restaurants are likely to be allowed to service customers outdoors from June 7, with a further loosening of restrictions in the weeks and months afterwards.

PATIENTS who were cocooning for more than a year have been given a new “lease of life” after receiving a vaccine against Covid-19. That’s according to Patricia O’Gorman, who was redeployed to be the clinical lead for the Mid-West Vaccination Centres at Treacy’s West County, the Radisson Blu Hotel, Meelick, and the Abbey Court Hotel, Nenagh, since March 1. The Ennis Hospital director of nursing has seen some patients cheering after they are vaccinated and has witnessed a sense of joy in their overall demeanour. “Vaccination is the start of a bright summer and an autumn of hope, particularly for people who want to go back to work, the businesses that didn’t get to work for the last year and people who want to see their grandparents, brothers and sisters.” She hopes the three centres will be able to reach peak capacity of delivering 6,000 vaccines in total by late May or early June. Patricia’s main role is to ensure …

In the first in a series of ‘Day in the Life’ interviews with healthcare workers redeployed during the Covid-19 pandemic, Dan Danaher speaks with Kilkee physiotherapist Deirdre Muldoon A KILKEE senior physiotherapist has lauded the teamwork and flexibility shown by all healthcare workers during the Covid-19 pandemic. Deirdre Muldoon praised staff who assumed a bigger workload providing health services when their colleagues were redeployed to other duties. When former Taoiseach Leo Varadkar publicly announced major restrictions for the first national lockdown, Deirdre wasn’t surprised, as there were rumblings in the health services that these strict measures were in the pipeline. At the outset of the pandemic, Deirdre admits what was happening in Italy was quite scary. “There was some relief that I wasn’t working in the acute sector any more and I was worried for family, friends, aunts and uncles as there was a big unknown. Thankfully, the first wave didn’t turn out to be as bad as what we …

A NURSING union has requested the Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA) to conduct an external inquiry to establish why overcrowding is so high in University Hospital Limerick (UHL), despite the provision of almost 100 extra in-patient beds. The nurses and midwives’ union called for HIQA to investigate what is going wrong at the hospital and make recommendations to alleviate pressure. UHL has been the most overcrowded hospital in Ireland every day this year. It had the highest overall number of patients waiting for care without beds in 2017, 2018, 2019, and 2020. The INMO said that “despite significant recruitment and 100+ additional acute beds”, the hospital still faced “runaway” overcrowding. On Friday, 52 patients were on trolleys in UHL, more than treble the number in any other hospital in the state. INMO Assistant Director of Industrial Relations, Mary Fogarty, said frontline staff are at their wits’ end. The hospital has recruited extra staff and secured a hundred extra beds. …

THE government’s vaccination programme may not be progressing as speedily as some hope, but there was good news this Wednesday when two of three mass vaccination centres in the region opened ahead of schedule, reports Dan Danaher. New centres in Ennis and Nenagh opened this Wednesday, instead of next Monday as originally planned. Along with the centre at the Radisson Blu, Meelick, the facilities form a tripartite vaccination network to accelerate the delivery of Covid-19 vaccine in the Mid-West. Activity at the Ennis and Nenagh centres commenced with the 65-69-year-old group, who have been registering in considerable numbers since the opening of the HSE online registration portal last week. Colette Cowan, CEO, UL Hospitals’ Group said the group is delighted to now open vaccination centres in Ennis and Nenagh a few days in advance of their initial planned date. The portal and the phone line remain open for those aged 65 and over and we expect to start allocating appointment …

ALCOHOL and drug use in the home have been blamed, in part, for what Clare’s Garda Chief Superintendent has described as “a very significant increase” in breaches of court orders in cases of domestic abuse. Outlining crime figures for January to March at the meeting of the Joint Policing Committee (JPC), Chief Superintendent Seán Colleran noted a 43% rise in the breaches of barring orders, safety orders and protection orders issued by the courts to protect victims and families. The rise, from 21 breaches in the first quarter of last year to 30 to date in 2021, is in sharp contrast to a general drop across most crime categories during the pandemic. The chief superintendent also outlined an increase of 10% in the number of domestic disputes where no offence was disclosed. These rose from 92 incidents between January and March of last year to 101 in the same period in 2021. Concerns about domestic abuse during the pandemic were …

PEOPLE who have benefited from the Killaloe Community Covid-19 Response team hugely appreciated this service, according to a local councillor. While some people were a bit reluctant at first to receive assistance, Councillor Tony O’Brien pointed out volunteers quickly put them at ease by reinforcing the message this was something they wanted to do for their local community. “If the Covid-19 pandemic has taught us anything, it is none of us are an island. Irish people are great for coming to the assistance of our neighbours in a time of trouble. “While rural isolation is a problem, there was also huge isolation within towns and villages. Some people had a routine of going to Mass in the morning and getting milk or bread on the way home. They lost all that. They were so lonely left behind closed doors. “This is where the Covid-19 response teams came to the fore. The volunteers deserve huge credit as they could identify people …