HSE: nursing home breaches addressed
Fine Gael has claimed that St Albert’s nursing home in Sunday’s Well remained open after inspection reports revealed breaches in patient care, poor environmental standards and staff shortages.
In December 2003, a Southern Health Board (SHB) nursing home complaints’ officer warned that “ill old people should not be referred” to the home. The officer issued the warning after investigating three complaints made about the nursing home — two in late 2003 and one in 2002.
HSE local health manager Tom Leonard said immediate action was taken on foot of the officer’s concerns.
“Once our complaints’ officer made her concerns known, the health authority immediately entered into discussions with the proprietor, established an independently chaired investigation committee and acted immediately with the proprietor to make the appropriate changes required to ensure a high level of patient care,” he said.
Mr Leonard said that an inquiry was established in early 2004 and the SHB immediately implemented all of its recommendations.
He said a lot of the issues related to a senior member of the home’s medical staff and the matter was addressed by the proprietor.
The inquiry team presented its report to the SHB in September 2004.
Many of the report’s recommendations have been addressed in the draft Standards for Residential Care Settings for Older People, which was published on Thursday by Health Minister Mary Harney.
Mr Leonard pointed out that unannounced inspections of St Albert’s nursing home were conducted on three separate occasions in 2004 and during 2005 the HSE South carried out a further three inspections — all unannounced.
The home was inspected on eight occasions last year.
The ownership of the nursing home changed in January last year and is trading under a different name.
The HSE has stressed that the investigation has nothing to do with the current home owner.
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