Another HSE mess - Children left in jeopardy

TODAY we report on yet another fiasco in the health system, where the fostering service in Meath is in breach of accepted standards by not ensuring that all children using the service have the support of a designated social worker.

On the same day it was announced that the Health Service Executive has replaced the head of its hospitals office, Mr John O’Brien, with four people.

Mr O’Brien, who came to prominence at the Dáil committee hearings when he announced that the breast cancer situation in Portlaoise was much graver than had been imagined, has moved to become a special adviser to HSE chief Professor Brendan Drumm.

In Meath an inspection in mid-2007 found a third of the children in foster care — 38 out of 115 — were without the support of a social worker.

Alarm bells ring all the louder when you realise this was the first inspection of a HSE foster care service. Are there others like it? If so how many? If so why?

All of those questions could also be asked about December claims from the Association of Social Workers about the impact the public sector recruitment embargo is having on their capacity to do their jobs.

Tomorrow some of the people involved in this terrible mismanagement will expect to be rewarded under benchmarking. Are we mad to put up with it?