Publication of nursing home inquiries urged

THE SUPPORT group for older people Age Action Ireland has called for the publication of all investigations into nursing homes carried out by the Health Service Executive.

The call was made following reports of serious problems with care in some private nursing homes in Ireland.

The HSE investigated almost 160 complaints against 120 private nursing homes last year. Some 32 of the complaints were fully upheld, while a further 22 were partially upheld.

The investigations found instances of physical and verbal abuse, errors with medication, non-clinical staff performing clinical duties, staff shortages, poor hygiene and inadequate supervision.

The investigation reports were released this week under the Freedom of Information Act and provided to The Irish Times yesterday on request.

In one nursing home in Dublin, investigators found a resident’s nutritional needs had not been met; she was dehydrated and had an undiagnosed urinary tract infection when she was transferred to hospital, where she later died. It was also found staff at the home had poor handwashing techniques, towels were dirty and there were issues with staff who had poor English.

In another home in Limerick non-clinical staff had administered an injection to a resident. Its owner was prosecuted.

In a third home in Kerry, it was found staff lacked clinical experience, had inappropriately administered medication and had failed to carry out medical instructions.

And in a fourth home, a resident had wandered out of the building and staff had not noticed she was missing.

Eamon Timmins, spokesman for Age Action Ireland, said the investigations had revealed very serious issues. “It looks like it will be an uphill battle to see nursing homes come up to standard – it is very depressing,” he said.

He said it was hard not to be downhearted having read the details of the investigations, including a case in which a nursing home resident was not given a shower for three weeks. “That is not dignified, it is inhumane treatment.”

Inadequate staffing levels and training, as well as a shortage of qualified staff had contributed to the problems, he said. There needed to be improvements in training, supervision and general management as well as security.

“Only 5 per cent of the population will go into a nursing home; when the standards slip we are really letting down the most vulnerable people in society,” he said.

Mr Timmins called for all investigations to be published on the HSE website alongside nursing home inspection reports.

Tadhg Daly, chief executive officer of Nursing Homes Ireland, said the failings revealed by the HSE investigations were absolutely unacceptable.

“Ultimately it’s about how we can learn from the situation,” he said. He pointed out that there was a deficit in terms of what Ireland spends on long-term care, but said that was no excuse for what had happened in some of the homes.

Complaints should be used as a continuous learning experience by nursing homes, he said, so that they can improve their service.