Elderly client left on toilet for hours

An immobile nursing-home resident was left unattended on a toilet for hours. Staff heard the resident banging on a radiator to summon help, according to a complaint received by the State health watchdog, the Health Information and Quality Authority (Hiqa).

The incident is among 650 concerns and complaints reported to the authority last year about facilities for older people. The complaints include allegations of physical, verbal, and sexual abuse. They describe residents being “treated like prisoners” and “lying in their own waste” in filthy bedrooms, as well as unexplained injuries allegedly being covered up by management and staff.

There were also allegations of financial abuse and systematic overcharging of residents. Some were being charged for free religious services, while others incurred a fee for using more than five nappies.