Fit children kept for days in hospitals is ‘scandalous’
The situation has been called a scandal by welfare activists. Many of the children were taken to the hospitals after being removed by gardaí from crisis homes, others were the offspring of pregnant or newly-arrived asylum seekers.
Most were kept for a number of days but a source at one of the hospitals said children have been kept for a number of months. Many of the children have behavioural problems.
Evidence of the scale of what is called “inappropriate admissions” emerges at a time of crisis in hospitals, but welfare activists are more concerned that healthy children are being placed on wards, sleeping for days in hospital beds alongside patients. It is a situation they thought resolved in recent years.
Mary O’Connor, of the pressure group Children in Hospital Ireland, described the situation as an “absolute disgrace.”
“Several years ago it was a big issue but I thought that was more or less rectified but it seems to have crept in again,” she said.
Children’s campaigner Peter McVerry added: “I had not come across this recently and was hoping and presuming it was sorted out. The Children’s Act of 1991 meant children should be placed in appropriate accommodation. 12 years on and they are still not getting it and that’s appalling.”
Health professionals and state agencies admitted last night the situation was unacceptable. The Eastern Regional Health Authority, the health boards, gardaí and social services agencies are working on a plan to stop the practice of placing children in hospitals.
A key problem is the lack of social services cover out of hours and at weekends. The group is also looking at organising more comprehensively emergency foster care, a situation that exists in the Southern Health Board. In Cork, according to a board spokeswoman, it is extremely rare that a healthy child is placed in a hospital.
Helen Byrne, chief executive of the state backed Council for Children’s Hospital Care, said an inter-agency group was working on a plan across the three hospitals.
“The situation is unacceptable. You really cannot be using up acute beds for these children,” she said.
Apart from Irish children, youngsters that accompany heavily pregnant asylum seekers have also ended up being cared for by hospitals.
Our Lady’s Hospital’s director of nursing Geraldine said: “Yes, there are children with social problems admitted into Our Lady’s. It’s not an ideal situation and it’s one that is regularly brought to the attention of the health boards.
