July 2009

 

Minister Harney is selective in ensuring effective, robust inspection regime for vulnerable people

- still no inspection of disability services

 New standards and inspection of nursing homes are this evening being cited as reason why Leas Cross will not happen again – but for people with an intellectual disability in residential care, there are no mandatory standards and no inspection and hence no guarantee this will not happen again to people with a disability.  

Standards have been produced by HIQA, but despite calls from Inclusion Ireland, the findings of the Ryan Report and now the Commission on Investigation into Leas Cross, the Government does not intend to put these standards on a statutory basis. There is no obligation to abide by them and there is no monitoring and no means of enforcement. 

The recent Ryan Report from the Child Abuse Commission contained three chapters on abuse of children with disabilities. Children and adults with disabilities are very vulnerable and are particularly at risk of abuse and neglect, yet no inspectors enter disability services to ensure adequate care is being provided. People with an intellectual disability were in Leas Cross, including Mr. Peter McKenna, who died 12 days after being moved from St. Michael’s House, an intellectual disability service, into Leas Cross. 

Today’s Report into Leas Cross shows that prior to the Primetime programme, complaints had been received about Leas Cross but they were not acted on. Given that there are no standards and inspection of disability services, do we have to wait for another Primetime programme before statutory standards and inspection for disability services are implemented?

Minister Harney today referred to the inspection regime for nursing homes that has been instigated since the Leas Cross issues first came into the public domain, saying:  

“My objective is to have an effective, robust, independent and properly resourced inspection regime for all residential services for older people.”

HIQA has also developed standards for residential services for people with a disability, but these standards will not be statutory and there will no inspection regime. What does this say about the Government’s attitude towards people with a disability?

ENDS

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