HSE reviews records for notifications of clerical abuse

THE Health Service Executive is carrying out a comprehensive review of all child protection records and files throughout Cork city and county to check for notifications of clerical sex abuse.

The trawl relates to allegations made against clergy in the Diocese of Cloyne only and is on foot of an Order of Discovery issued to the HSE South by the Dublin Archdiocese Commission of Investigation.

A spokesperson for the HSE said they had until June 5 to comply with the order. The number of files in question is not yet known.

Yesterday, at the Regional Health Forum for the HSE South, Pat Healy, HSE assistant national director for Primary, Community and Continuing Care in the south, said they were “satisfied” that there were “adequate child protection practices in place in the Diocese [of Cloyne]”.

He said no new cases of clerical sex abuse had been identified to him in recent times “but we are monitoring the situation on a monthly basis with the delegate”, Mr Healy said.

The Cloyne child protection delegate is Fr Bill Bermingham, who replaced Monsignor Denis O’Callaghan shortly after the National Board for Safeguarding Children report was completed. The report found practices in the Diocese of Cloyne were “significantly deficient and in some respects dangerous” in dealing with allegations of child abuse.

Mr Healy said the HSE would also be holding quarterly meetings with the reconstituted Inter-Diocesan Case Management Advisory Committee, with the first meeting set to take place in six to eight weeks.

In addition, a Best Practice Supervision Policy is being implemented in the diocese. Mr Healy said this meant priests against whom allegations were made underwent appropriate risk assessments and that there was a supervisory process in place to ensure that they did not have inappropriate access to children.

Of the four priests against whom allegations have been made, Mr Healy said “some” were not in the clergy anymore. “The gardaí are following up on these individuals.”

He said the HSE was satisfied the diocese was now compliant with best practice guidelines in terms of child protection.

“If anything arises in the future that we are not satisfied about, we’ll make it clear,” Mr Healy said.

He said the HSE “continues to communicate and maintain linkages with both the clergy and the gardaí in fulfilment of our obligations regarding the individual situations that arise in respect to notifications”.

Mr Healy’s presentation followed a request from Youghal town and Cork county councillor Barbara Murray for an update on the HSE’s involvement in issues arising from the NBSC Cloyne Inquiry.