30 out of 45 resident centres for older people found to have non-compliance issues

A total of 30 out of 45 resident centres for older people were found to be non-compliant with regulations during inspections earlier this year, with one centre found to be non-compliant with 12 regulations. 

The Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA) has published 45 inspection reports on residential centres for older people.

The inspections were carried out between December 2021 and May 2022.

The Chief Inspector of Social Services has statutory responsibility for independently regulating designated centres for older people for compliance with the Health Act (2007) Regulations and the National Standards for Residential Care Settings for Older People in Ireland (2016), to ensure that the people living in these services are safe and well cared for.

Of the 45 reports published, inspectors found evidence of good practice and compliance with the regulations and standards on a number of inspections.

HIQA found that 15 centres were either fully compliant or substantially compliant with the national standards and regulations. At the time of inspection, these centres were meeting residents’ needs and delivering care in line with the national standards and regulations.

Levels of non-compliance varied in the remaining inspection reports, with 10 centres found to be non-compliant with one regulation, five centres non-compliant with two regulations, four centres non-compliant with three regulations and 11 centres non-compliant with four or more regulations. Of these 11 centres, one was non-compliant with 10 regulations, while another was non-complaint with 12 regulations.

On these inspections, non-compliance was identified in areas including; governance and management, residents’ rights, premises, infection control, protection, healthcare, fire precautions, notification of incidents, medicines and pharmaceutical services, individual assessment and care plan, healthcare, staffing, training and staff development, written policies and procedures, records, complaints procedure, application for registration or renewal of registration, personal possessions and managing behaviour that is challenging.

Where non-compliance with the regulations was identified, providers were required to submit compliance plans to demonstrate how they will make improvements and come into compliance with the regulations. Submitted compliance plans are included in the published reports. 

Reports and compliance plans can be found on www.hiqa.ie.