Kerry nursing home residents' money paid into centre's account, inspectors find
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Money belonging to residents living in a Kerry nursing home was paid into the centre’s account instead of their own, according to an inspection report.
The Health Information and Quality Authority (Hiqa) found 11 centres out of 50 non-compliant with four or more regulations, which include protection, safeguarding, residents’ rights and managing behaviour.
The inspections were carried out between November last year and April this year.
At Aperee Living in Tralee, inspectors found all “reasonable measures” were not taken by the provider to protect the finances of residents and management of pension arrangements.
Hiqa found the provider non-compliant in the area of protection for not setting up a resident/client bank account to separate the money needed to operate the centre and the residents’ personal monies.
The money of residents was being lodged into the centre’s bank account and was therefore not protected.
Similarly, in the Sacré Coeur Nursing Home in Tipperary Town, the inspector found residents' money was not being held in a separate client bank account.
“While residents’ individual balances and financial records were maintained in ledgers and made available for the inspector to review, the actual finances were not held in a separate client bank account,” the inspector said.
Additionally, the centre failed to notify the chief inspector of 12 deaths of residents at the centre that happened in 2023. It also failed to notify about a serious injury to a resident that required immediate hospital treatment.
In Newcastle West Nursing Home in Limerick, Hiqa found the systems in place to protect residents from abuse in the centre were “not robust” and did not ensure all residents were adequately protected.
The inspector found some incidents had not been appropriately investigated, which meant the management team had not “documented the factor which may have contributed to the incidents".
“There was no analysis of the root cause of these incidents, and there was no identification of areas of care improvement or learning for future practice,” the inspector said.
At Ballinamore House nursing home in Co Mayo, the provider failed to take “reasonable measures” to ensure all residents were protected from abuse.
It also failed to recognise and respond appropriately to “two allegations of abuse made by a resident”.
“As a result, there was no investigation into the allegation and no assurance that the concerns raised were managed appropriately and this resident was protected.”