Nursing home criticised in HIQA report

A CORK nursing home has been heavily criticised by the Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA) over its failure to comply with legislation and quality standards governing residential centres for the elderly.

A new HIQA report found Powdermill Nursing Home in Ballincollig failed to meet the basic legislation governing nursing homes in a number of areas.

HIQA inspectors claimed there was a lack of adequate governance in the centre. They also found the provider, Joseph Peters and the person in charge, Ajami P Kuriakose, failing to adhere to required regulations.

“Staff recruitment, Garda Síochána vetting and training procedures were not adequate or suitable,” said the official HIQA report.

It also concluded that the levels of staff and skill mix on duty were inadequate given the dependency levels of residents and the layout of Powdermill.

The nursing home which is owned by Joseph and Catherine Peters opened in 1984 and can accommodate up to 42 residents.

The unannounced visit of the nursing home by inspectors last November was triggered by concern about staffing levels and training at Powdermill being reported to HIQA.

On the date of the inspection, two nurses and four care staff were on duty to attend to 39 residents.

HIQA inspectors said Mr Peters was unaware of the main legislation governing the care and welfare of residents in nursing homes or of his legal responsibilities as provider.

Mr Peters told inspectors that he did not see the importance of policies and procedures even though they are required by the Health Act 2007.

When asked about Powdermill’s admissions policy, Mr Peters replied: “We will take anybody.”

The nursing home was also criticised for not having any complaints procedure. “There were no quality systems in place to ensure a consistent high standard of services and correct unsatisfactory services. There were no risk management systems in place to protect the residents and staff,” remarked the HIQA inspection team.

When asked about training to prevent abuse of residents, Mr Peters replied that the issue was “dreamed up by Age Action Ireland”.

HIQA issued Powdermill with a list of 10 required improvements necessary to comply with nursing home legislation.

In response to the report, Mr Peters said the nursing home’s priority had always been “residents come first”. He pointed out that several positive changes had been made following the inspection and promised that further improvement should be evident when all commitments and timescales were fulfilled.