MORE THAN 10,000 adults and children with disabilities are living in publicly funded residential facilities that are not subject to State inspections or care regulations, new figures show.
This is despite evidence which shows that children with learning disabilities face a much higher risk of abuse or mistreatment than the general population.
The abuse of people with disabilities in residential care made headlines last week following a damning report into events at Winterbourne View, a private hospital near Bristol.
Eleven former staff members have pleaded guilty to ill-treating adults with autism and learning disabilities at the centre, which is owned by Irish investors.
Of the 10,000 people with disabilities living in residential or respite care in Ireland, about 500 are children, according to the latest available figures.
The residential centres are mostly funded by the State and run by voluntary or religious groups. In addition, a number of private operators have recently started providing this form of care.
Dr Margaret Kennedy, an expert in disability and abuse, said she was shocked at how slow successive governments have been in starting a proper inspections regime.
“Anyone in institutional care is vulnerable, but people with disabilities are the most vulnerable,” she said.
“I have no doubt that the kind of treatment that was happening at Winterbourne is happening here, given the lack of any independent inspections regime or mandatory care standards.”
Astatement from the office of the Minister of State for Disability, Kathleen Lynch said draft standards have been produced by the Health Information and Quality Authority (Hiqa) which will be placed on a statutory footing.
“Discussions are ongoing with Hiqa regarding the resources required to set up and commence the registration and inspection regime,” the statement said.
“Given the complex nature of residential service provision for people with disabilities – ranging from congregated settings to dispersed housing in the community – careful consideration is also being given to designing the most appropriate regulatory model and this work is ongoing,” it said.
Officials said the new regulatory system should be up and running by the middle of next year.
Inclusion Ireland, a national association for people with intellectual disabilities, said it was “seriously concerned” that the date could be pushed back.
“There were repeated promises from the previous government to introduce inspections . . . Children and adults with disabilities are the only group of people in services funded by the State that are not subject to independent inspections,” an Inclusion Ireland spokeswoman said.
The Health Service Executive has said it is not possible to release individual details of complaints regarding suspected abuse or mistreatment in State-funded facilities.
However, The Irish Times obtained figures in 2010 which showed that more than 500 complaints regarding the care of people with disabilities or mental health problems had been made over a two-year period.
