Health watchdog says child care is dictated by cost

THE care of troubled children is being decided on the basis of cost rather than what is in their best interests, according to the authority responsible for standards in the health service.

The Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA) said in its annual report that children under the age of 12 were being kept in residential centres, something it says is inappropriate.

The main reason for this was to save money, it said.