Call for enactment of adult safeguarding legislation

“There is an urgent need for the enactment of adult safeguarding legislation,” she said.

Organised by the school of nursing and midwifery at TCD, the conference heard from multiple speakers based at home and abroad on the need for greater supports for adults at risk of abuse and to enact adequate legislative measures to protect them.

The HSE’s National Safeguarding Office’s annual report for 2022 said there were 13,700 safeguarding concerns reported across the country, up 18% on the previous year. Almost two-thirds of this was physical or psychological abuse while a further 9% was financial abuse.

Independent researcher Michael Browne told the conference that safeguarding adults, regardless of the situation, is “everybody’s business” and that the “full story” of how vulnerable adults were affected by the covid-19 pandemic has yet to be told.

“[The pandemic] resulted in circumstances that provided fertile ground for abuse,” he said.

Under-reporting of abuse

Mr Browne said there was likely an under-reporting of abuse of adults in Ireland, which can take many forms such as physical, emotional, domestic, sexual, and financial. He said this under-reporting could be due to factors such as that particular adult having limited verbal or other communication skills, shame or embarrassment, and poor awareness among the public as to whom it can be reported to.

The researcher said there was a lack of awareness of issues around adult safeguarding in Ireland generally, and this was compounded by data sharing uncertainties across organisations and a lack of proper regulations in the area.

Mr Browne said that high-profile cases such as the Emily case or the Brandon case get notoriety in the media but can be quickly forgotten about while underlying problems remain.

Ms Rickard-Clarke, meanwhile, said there was a multitude of gaps in Ireland’s legislative and regulatory framework and, while some reforms and new legislations have been many years in the making, many have yet to be passed by the Oireachtas.

This included not having a national database for the collection of safeguarding concerns, no overall regulatory body handling complaints, and the lack of dedicated safeguarding legislation.

Ms Rickard-Clarke added that there have been “plenty of reports” on areas around safeguarding in Ireland but “action and follow-up is very, very poor”.