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THE RELIGIOUS SISTERS of Charity have stepped back from their involvement in the new National Maternity Hospital after a massive public backlash.
Although their statement yesterday said that they had been considering this option for the past two years, it’s clear to stakeholders that it was the outrage from the public that pushed them to give up ownership.
AIMS Ireland, the representative body of maternity service users in Ireland, praised both the Minister for Health Simon Harris, and the Sisters of Charity for achieving this result, which was “undoubtedly down to the people’s voices”.
National Maternity Hospital board member Mícheál Mac Donncha (Sinn Féin) said that “it was clear that public opinion influenced their decision”.
I’ve no doubt that their withdrawal was caused by the controversy.
Social Democrats leader Róisín Shorthall said that the decision showed that ”the wide-spread public outcry” in relation to the National Maternity Hospital “has been heard and heard loudly”.
It is encouraging for people to see that public sentiment is hugely important and can change policy direction.
The Sisters of Charity’s decision seems to be a sudden one – the board of the National Maternity Hospital wasn’t informed of the decision beforehand, and learned about it through media reports.
On Sunday, Simon Harris said on The Week In Politics that a solution to the National Maternity Hospital row would be made publicly known through a briefing to Cabinet this week.
Airing of views
“For the last two years we have been actively working to find the best way to relinquish our shareholding of the St Vincent’s Healthcare Group. It includes three hospitals: St Vincent’s University Hospital, St Vincent’s Private Hospital and St Michael’s Hospital Dún Laoghaire.”
That’s part of the Sisters of Charity statement from yesterday.
We asked them what was done in the past few years to relinquish their ownership of the St Vincent’s Hospital Group, but so far, they haven’t responded.
The Department of Health said that Harris’ short statement yesterday in which he welcomed the decision, would be the only comment he will make for the time being.
What’s next?
But there’s still some confusion over who exactly will own the new Maternity Hospital.
AIMS Ireland said that it was now “crucial” that the hospital defines and follows their ethos, based on “international best practice and evidenced-based, woman-centered care”.
Although board member Mac Donncha said that the clinical ethos of the hospital has been decided as separate from religious involvement, he says it’s still not clear who will own the hospital.
Will the current arrangements secured by Kieran Mulvey (the mediator) minus the Sisters of Charity be implemented as planned? We just don’t know.
His fellow board member and Lord Mayor of Dublin Brendan Carr, said that the State should take ownership and full responsibility for the new hospital, rather than let it being handed from the control of one private group to another.
Another National Maternity Hospital board member and Green Party Councillor Claire Byrne agrees.
“That still needs to be worked out. From a Green Party perspective, we would hope it would be placed in public ownership.”
She said they awaited a clarifying statement from Simon Harris on the matter.
‘Vindicated’
In the meantime, there’s a general air of praise for the Sisters of Charity for making the decision to relinquish clinical control and ownership of the National Maternity Hospital.
Speaking on the Sean O’Rourke Show yesterday, Dr Peter Boylan, who resigned from the National Maternity Hospital board following the controversy, said that the transfer of ownership was a mistake that has now been corrected.
“There’s no hospital in the world which is on land owned by a catholic religious order which permits a lot of the procedures, which are part and parcel of modern maternity care and I think that’s what caused the most difficulty.”
He said he feels vindicated in his views, but stressed that the Sisters of Charity and Minister Simon Harris deserve credit for the decision reached yesterday.
The Religious Sisters of Charity were duty-bound by their ethos and beliefs as any religious order,” AIMS Ireland said.
“So their involvement in a National Maternity Hospital would have put them in an impossible position. We welcome their honesty and clarity.”
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What about the board member who was forced to step down by all the current board numbers over making the public aware of this in the first place. Will he now be appointed back to the board as it is quite clear he is a man with a moral compass and a ackbone
@Chris Turner: backbone
@Chris Turner: Most likely not. A moral compass and a backbone are surplus to requirements.
What’s the catch ?
@Catherine Mc: Indeed, its way too smooth for my liking..
@Jonny Irish:
Strange, I wouldn’t trust either government or sister’s of charity.
Interesting development but you can be sure as long as a Fine Gael government are involved there will be profits made for private investors at the expense of the Irish state. They just can’t help themselves.
The National Maternity Hospital showed be owned by the State.
I find this very suspect what’s the catch there’s no way nuns are giving in unless their ideology is protected. Also I hope this doesn’t mean that st Michaels existence is at risk. Small hospitals always seem to be target’s
It’s a pity all the people on this were not looking for “The Catch” when the Sisters looked to have the hospital built in 1834.
@Padraig Corcoran: wow, were any of the posters alive in the 1830′s. Perhaps you could look at where the money came from and then comment. Congregations of nuns made profits on the backs of young girls, selling babies and other disgusting practices.
@Paul Fahey: don’t go telling the truth now , you’ll upset the zealots
@Paul Fahey: very literal there Paul. Every citizen of the state was responsible for what happened women and babies in this country.
@Padraig Corcoran: no they were not, but you convince yourself of that to protect your religious masters. No relative of mine ever raped, murdered or sold a child for profit; to the contrary my grandfather was born in a mother and baby home and they beat the shit out of him until they sold him as a farm labourer, aged 8. None of my family were gifted thousands of acres of public land, which they continue to sell for profit until this day. None of my relatives have been bequeathed property and monies by thousands of elderly folk, because they were told it would gain them access to heaven and eternal life, only for them to continue to sell those lands for profit until this day.
@Padraig Corcoran: I think you had a slight misprint there ? I don’t think many were around in 1834….
The Sister of Brutality ,sorry Charity .will be getting millions of Euro ,and as a charity will pay no taxes ,While the main party politicians and the media will praise this “outcome ” What a load of bullshit
Who are the new owners? Would they by any chance be private individuals who are also members of the same Sisters of Charity order and who are holding the property in trust for the Sisters of Charity. Just wondering since nobody has declared who the new owner is and what price the property fetched, Sisters of Charity merely state that they have relinquished control of the property! That may sound crazy but a similar scenario occurred with the transfer of a Cork hospital property some years ago when a congregation of nuns transferred it to some individuals who are members of the same congregation, it’s a handy way of concealing property when it could be valued as means when compensation awards are involved.
We need to get rid of all relegious involvement in this state.
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