Nursing homes - New beginning

THE shocking conditions revealed at the Leas Cross nursing home some years ago shocked the whole country and began a process that led to yesterday’s announcement of new standards for nursing homes.

There are about 21,000 people in nursing homes in Ireland and very many of us are destined to follow in their footsteps.

These new standards must not be seen as the end of the matter but should represent the first steps in a process of continual improvement. And most importantly, they must be given the force that moves them from theory to practice by effective policing.