HSE faces ‘legal minefield’ if it intervenes in cases

THE Health Service Executive (HSE) has been warned it faces a legal minefield if it intervenes in the employment of a person accused of child or elder abuse.

A top judge in Britain and the HSE’s own legal advisers in Leinster have said although there may be allegations against a worker with access to vulnerable people, the law restricts direct action.

Sinéad Kearney is head of the health service division at BCM Hanby Wallace, which is the law agent for the HSE in Dublin and parts of Leinster.