‘Appalling’ nursing homes remain open, says FG

SEVEN nursing homes which were the subject of “the most appalling and disgraceful reports” remain open, the Dáil heard yesterday.

Fine Gael TD Fergus O’Dowd, who has campaigned for several years for improvements in this area, said nothing had changed since the substandard conditions at the Leas Cross nursing home in Dublin were exposed a year ago.

“Leas Cross is the scandal of which we are most publicly aware in this area, but it is not even on the list of bad nursing homes the Health Service Executive (HSE) gave me in 2001,” he said.

“Seven nursing homes, the subject of the most appalling and disgraceful reports, remain open.

“Nothing has changed under this Government except that more people are being treated badly by it because it will not insist on, and has not yet brought to the House, legislation to change the nursing home regime and appoint a fully independent nursing home inspectorate which will vindicate the right of the elderly and sick to decent and proper care.

“They get that in a majority of nursing homes, but in a significant minority they do not and will not get that until the law is changed.”

Existing law, he said, was not strong enough to force the immediate closure of a substandard nursing home.

“Currently, we can only close nursing homes through a long process that can take years to put through the District Court.

“People are still dying because they are not properly cared for, but nobody in Government is committed to changing this.”

But the Minister of State at the Department of Health, Sean Power, defended the Government.

“The process has begun to review the current inspection system, with a view to strengthening the powers available to those involved in inspecting facilities and to extend a strengthened inspection system to public facilities,” he said.

“To this end, a working group has been established and is chaired by the department to develop the standards for residential care settings for older people.”

Members include representatives from the department, the HSE, the Social Services Inspectorate and the Irish Health Service Accreditation Board.

“The standards are being developed in line with best international practice,” Mr Power said.

“These standards will put the resident at the centre of care and aim to ensure that the older person’s needs are central to the philosophy of the residential care setting.”

He said it was hoped the standards would be ready “in draft form” in July, and a three-month consultation process would then begin to see if further amendments were necessary.