‘This was our investment in future leaders’
THE head of St John of God in Ireland has defended sending six senior staff to a conference in Florida this month – even as ‘draconian’ cuts affected services back home.
Blaming tight finances, the order has slashed services and been ordered by the health watchdog HIQA to close two centres for safety reasons. Just this week, parents at a special school were told that vital services were ending.
Speaking exclusively to the Irish Mail on Sunday in his elegant offices on the St John of God campus in Stillorgan yesterday, Brother Donatus Forkan said spending almost €24,000 on a twoday conference was a separate issue to funding cuts.
He said: ‘It is two different things. This was the Brothers’ investment in our people. We want all of our services to have leadership there that will be sensitive to the needs of the people and who will see things though the eyes of St John of God when they’re making decisions.
‘The reality is we have to prioritise the money that we have.’
St John of God offers services, that are mainly funded by the HSE, to about 8,000 people.
Brother Donatus said: ‘Our senior leadership team have been with St John of God for many years. It is important that they have the foundation of what it is about.’
The Florida group includes the HR manager, the finance boss, the group CEO, the regional director, a chaplain and Br Donatus himself, whose position is Provincial of the West European Province.
He said the Florida trip: ‘I checked in on the Saturday and checked out on the Wednesday. The Brother and myself flew back on the Wednesday.
‘John and the others took some holiday leave, a couple of days. They checked out of the hotel.’
He was unable to say how many days the managers spent in Florida after the conference, although the Order paid for all of the flights.
One of the group, CEO John Pepper, has worked for the order since the 1990s, but when pressed on what Mr Pepper could learn in two days to add to that experience, Br Donatus simply repeated his previous comments on the future of the service.
He said: ‘The Brothers financed it, there were no public monies used. It came from the order, it’s the money we use for paying our bills and maintenance. The Province, we have our own account. This is our way of investing in the future of St John of God; educating the people who taking over from us is a priority.’
He said the four managers would write articles in the newsletter, detailing their learning.
When queried on sacrifices made by staff on the ground, he said: ‘No frontline staff were in Orlando but they will benefit from it.’
American healthcare leaders have already given workshops in Ireland at the order’s invitation but Br Donatus insisted that this did not remove the need for his staff to go to Florida.
When asked about the financial reasons for the ending of life-skills classes for teenagers at a Dublin school, he refused to accept that there was any other option.
One mother had told the MOS that families would have fundraised if they had known.
When the MOS put to him that the HSE had stated that it had not made the decision, he said: ‘They would say that wouldn’t they? It obviously has to do with funding.’
Br Donatus also dismissed concerns about the Orlando conference raised by families whose relatives attend a centre in Co Louth, the residential part of which was closed by HIQA this year. He said: ‘Again, I say people can have their own perceptions, but the facts are as they are.
‘It’s hugely important that we have present and future leaders.’