A lack of staff in services for people with disabilities was one of the main issues raised with the office of the HSE’s confidential recipient last year.
A lack of staff in residential and community settings for people with disabilities meant “some people who could have stayed in their own homes had to move into nursing homes, perhaps after a short hospital stay, because of lack of support at home, even though this support had been previously available to the person” said Leigh Gath, confidential recipient at the HSE.
“Hopefully as things are becoming more stable after two years of Covid, these concerns will resolve,” she said.
Last year 155 formal concerns were raised with the office of the HSE’s confidential recipient, a reduction from 165 in 2020. The 155 concerns last year were spread across the nine community healthcare organisations, with 137 related to disability services, including older person services. A total of 14 related to mental health and to primary care.
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Up to 124 (80 per cent) of the 155 issues were dealt with, 56 (36 per cent) within a month.
These findings were published on Monday in the Office of the HSE’s confidential recipient’s sixth annual report. It is an independent national service that receives concerns/complaints related to vulnerable adults in HSE or HSE funded care services. The confidential recipient is appointed by the HSE but works independently of it.
There were also cases in 2021 where people placed in a private nursing home were not entitled to “occupational therapy, physiotherapy, aids or appliances through their medical card because of where they live”. It was “a serious concern because in private nursing homes the person’s pension is used to supplement the Fair Deal Scheme, leaving them with limited funds to pay for toiletries, expensive assessments or expensive equipment to give them a quality of life”, she said.
Since the establishment of the office of the confidential recipient there have been more than 1,200 concerns/complaints formally received. Many people have also contacted the office for advice and support on an informal basis.
The confidential recipient can be contacted at 061-585603, or 087-6657269, by email leigh.gath@crhealth.ie or by letter to the HSE Vocational Training Centre, Dooradoyle, Co Limerick.
