The HSE has referred matters relating to 21 care home residents to Gardaí after two reviews found there were "reasonable grounds for concern in relation to physical or sexual abuse".
The reviews were carried out after it emerged an elderly care home resident — referred to using a pseudonym, Emily — was raped by a member of staff at a HSE community nursing unit in April 2020. The staff member in question was convicted and sentenced in July 2020 about the offence.
The HSE undertook two reviews concerning the matter; one led by the National Independent Review Panel (NIRP), which largely focused on governance, staff response and safety protocols, while the relevant local Community Healthcare Office (CHO) safeguarding team also examined the case.
The safeguarding team's review sought to establish if further reportable incidents had taken place at the care centre, and whether such incidents were dealt with appropriately under the HSE's Safeguarding Vulnerable Persons at Risk of Abuse policy.
As part of the reviews, the incidents concerning 21 past or current residents, in addition to Emily, were identified and reported to Gardaí.
HSE chief executive Bernard Gloster added: "The NIRP report identified a number of further residents who had alleged sexual abuse in the past, but whose complaints and allegations seem to have been attributed to their clinical condition and were therefore not reported or followed up on."
They also found there were reasonable grounds for concern in relation to psychological abuse in respect of two patients. However, the HSE noted these concerns "do not meet the criteria for notification to An Garda Síochána", but were instead dealt with in line with the HSE's safeguarding policies.
Finally, the safeguarding review also highlighted concerns relating one former resident, finding their file had sections missing. However, the HSE said the full file was subsequently located and reviewed, with no further concerns identified.
'A lot to learn'
Mr Gloster reiterated his apologies to Emily's family on behalf of the HSE, adding the executive "have a lot to learn and change".
Remarking on the 21 cases referred to Gardaí, he said: "While investigations could not be concluded, I am satisfied this is a clear indicator that the approach to safeguarding in this facility was in many ways of a poor standard, despite the fact that many very good staff work there."
Following the reviews' findings, the HSE has committed to providing additional safeguarding training for staff and improving safeguarding checks and documenting protocols.
Quarterly inter-agency meetings will also be held between the HSE, Gardaí and Tusla, in addition to financial institutions and voluntary agencies.
A further external review into Emily's case, headed by safeguarding expert Jackin McIlroy, was also announced last month. Mr Gloster confirmed this review has since begun and committed to publishing Ms McIlroy's findings.
"Finally, I want to again apologise to all people affected by these events, conscious that there are many people in care facilities. We recognise the concern they and their families may have on hearing of this case," Mr Gloster said.
"We will continue to support them in the coming weeks and months as we all work together to ensure we do all we can to provide support to those who need it and to radically overhaul our safeguarding approach — not just in our structures but also our culture."
If you have been affected by any of the issues raised in this article, you can call the national 24-hour Rape Crisis Helpline at 1800-77 8888, access text service and web chat options at drcc.ie/services/helpline/, or visit Rape Crisis Help.
Written by Muireann Duffy
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