'The Government has to listen now': Families of nursing home residents hold protest at Dáil
Janet Coyle with a photo of her mother Veronica, who was a resident of Ballynoe Nursing Home, Cork at the Care Champions Ireland protest outside Leinster House. Pictures: Sam Boal/Collins
A protest against abuse or neglect of older people heard calls for Government action instead of finger-pointing.
The protest, organised by advocacy group Care Champions, took place outside the Dáil on Thursday. It followed a disturbing RTÉ documentary revealing neglect of residents at two Emeis Ireland nursing homes.
Allison McCarthy travelled from Cork City for the protest. She said: "It’s just been traumatic for everyone.
“The Government has to listen now, that’s neglect, there’s no human rights there. And people are paying so much money a week for that. Nobody deserves that at the end of their life, to be manhandled and mistreated.”
She previously went to the Ombudsman about her mother’s death in 2021 at Mercy University Hospital.
“I was shocked watching this, my sister even rang me to say ‘what’s going on?’. This is four years later and this is happening now when people can go in and visit,” she said.
She was distressed too for families, saying: “You put them in there to be safe in hospitals and nursing homes.”
Also protesting in the pouring rain was Yvonne Wynne, who held photographs of her mother Mary.
One showed Mary aged 85 happy and well. The other taken just months later showed a vastly different woman before her death in May 2024.
“My amazing mother died of sepsis which, if it had been identified, could have been treated,” she said.
Mary spent 18 months at a private nursing home, which Ms Wynne did not wish to name. The family saw standards change after a number of staff left.
In May, when Mary became “very confused and quite unwell”, Ms Wynne had to ask for a urinary tract infection check.
Soon afterwards, she said: “I visited the home at 9.40pm to find my mam in bed, fully clothed in a pair of black trousers and green top, heavily soiled from breast to knee.”
She could hear Mary screaming before she saw her, saying: “Her mouth was hard with white matter, and bone dry, she was screaming in agony.”
She then had to argue with staff about calling an ambulance.
At Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital, she said: “A geriatrician sat down with me, and explained Mam had sepsis, her kidneys were failing and they were unlikely to save mam’s life.”
The family have since raised complaints with Hiqa. “I will continue to fight in my mother’s name to ensure that no more people die in residential care because of neglect,” she said.
Care Champions co-founder Majella Beattie said: “I’m glad that programme was aired, because I hope it showed people the issues that our families have been raising for the last five years.”
The group formed during the pandemic to support nursing home residents.
“It’s appalling that we are still treating people like this in 2025, and this is going to continue because of the system we have set up,” she warned.
She is assisting some families linked to the homes investigated. She called for individual safeguarding reviews and alternative accommodation if desired.
“We believe that the Taoiseach and Minister Kieran O’ Donnell who came out pointing fingers at Hiqa and the HSE need to start pointing fingers at themselves now,” she said.
She was critical of the over-reliance on large private chains, saying she has been told some are viewed as “too big to fail” now. She called for urgent action on long-delayed safeguarding legislation.
Sinn Féin TD Thomas Gould, at the protest, said families affected need to get answers.
He is aware of concerns raised about Cork nursing homes as well, saying: “People are coming to me about the level of care. The staff are unbelievable but there’s a lack of supports. The buildings are run down, there’s a lack of equipment, a lack of staff.”
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