Anger over care home inspections
Wednesday July 07 2010
YOUNG people in state residential care have complained inspectors are not spending long enough talking to them or giving feedback on how their concerns are being tackled, a new report has revealed.
The majority would also not know how to contact inspectors, and two young people claimed they were not allowed to do so.
The views emerged in a report arising out of a series of interviews conducted with the young residents in state care to assess how they saw the role of inspectors from the Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA).
These inspectors carry out both announced and unannounced visits of units.
The report comes in the wake of ongoing worries about the standards of care in residential homes due to deaths of children in care, as well as the inadequacies exposed in the childcare system where there are not enough social workers.
Commenting on the findings Marion Witton, chief inspector of Social Services with HIQA, said these children were very vulnerable and it was important lessons were learned from the Ryan Report on institutional abuse, which emphasised the need to listen to young people.
The report called for inspectors to consider making preliminary visits to a centre in advance of inspection so that children will be more familiar with them. It also stressed the need for the young residents to be given a copy of the inspector's report. Ms Witton said they would be open to carrying out more spot checks of the centres and to staying overnight.
The majority of children in state care are with foster parents, but last year the numbers of residential units nationwide went up to 388.
- Eilish O' Regan Health Correspondent
Irish Independent
