Family ‘panicking’ over rest home closure risk
More than 30 people will be out of a job and 18 elderly residents will need a new home if a proposal to close an Invercargill rest home is confirmed.
Takitimu Home manager Graham Dobbs said a proposal to close the rest home on April 18 was made because of its struggling financial position. A decision will be made tomorrow.
‘‘We have been running at a deficit for several years. There’s a process we are going through and we are consulting with the staff,’’ Dobbs said.
The Conyers St rest home, which has been open for 55 years and is owned by the Takitimu Home Anglican Care Trust, has 33 beds, 18 residents and about 34 staff members, Dobbs said.
Residents and staff were told of the proposal, with staff given until today to provide feedback.
‘‘The staff are saddened; we are all saddened. We are a small rest home and there’s empathy between staff and residents,’’ Dobbs said.
A family member of one resident said she was ‘‘panicking’’ about finding a new home for her loved one if closure went ahead.
‘‘I don’t know If I can get him into a new home – it’s working me up.’’
Dobbs said the rest home had been liaising with the Southern District Health Board (SDHB) and would help to find alternative homes for the residents if closure was confirmed.
Takitimu Home’s financial issues arose from low occupancy and rising wage and operating costs, making the continued operation of the facility uneconomic, he said.
Natasha Lindsay, who is the rest home’s head cook and a spokeswoman for the on-site E tu¯ union members, said members were angry and in shock.
‘‘Some of the staff are quite loyal to this place – we have been here a long time. I have been here 16 years, it’s what I know,’’ Lindsay said.
E tu¯ Southland union organiser Anna Huffstutler said five days was not long enough for consultation. ‘‘Far from it ... it appears to be a done deal because of the lack of consultation.’’
Dobbs said the tight time frame for consultation with staff was necessary because they had also felt ‘‘honour bound’’ to tell residents of the proposal.
Some residents had already said they were leaving before a decision on closure was made.
If the closure goes ahead, it will be the second rest home the trust had closed in Invercargill. In 2012 it closed the Renich Rest Home, which had 13 residents.
SDHB senior staffer Lisa Gestro said the health board provided funding to rest-home owners to provide long-term residential care to people who were eligible for government funding.
‘‘There is accommodation available in several other aged residential care facilities in Invercargill and we will work alongside Takitimu Home to ensure a smooth transition of residents to them,’’ she said.