THE DIRECTOR of a special care unit for troubled children turned a high-powered firehose on a teenage girl after she refused to get out of bed, it has emerged.
The incident, which occurred at Ballydowd care unit in Dublin last year, prompted a number of investigations by the Health Service Executive (HSE) into care standards at the centre. The unit is due to close following a damning report by the Health Information and Quality Authority (Hiqa).
The report highlighted a litany of problems, including difficulties with management, security of children and basic accommodation standards.
It also highlighted serious difficulties of trust between management and staff, which presented as a crisis of confidence in the management of challenging behaviour and in the recording of significant incidents.
The child at the centre of the firehose incident made a complaint to gardaí at Lucan, although it is understood that no charges have been brought.
Following the firehose incident in February of last year, two care staff who were alleged to have encouraged the teenager to make a complaint were placed on administrative leave. They were subsequently reinstated after almost five months.
One staff member who witnessed the firehose event said: “We couldn’t believe it. The hose was turned on a full capacity, it was a powerful hose, for about a minute or more. The room was completely saturated.”
The HSE yesterday declined to comment on the firehose incident except to say that under the Childcare Act, it was precluded from commenting on individual children in care.
In a statement, it said: “It should be stressed that children in a special care unit can often present with difficult and complex behaviours that are associated with a high level of risk. Staff working at special care units are trained to deal with this type of behaviour, while at all times protecting the best interest of the child.”
A senior source has confirmed that a social work team in the north-west reviewed the incident and concluded that the treatment of the child could be considered abusive.
However, a subsequent independent report commissioned by the HSE’s assistant national director for children and families disagreed with these findings. It found the treatment could not be categorised as abuse based on official guidelines.
The volume of concerns among staff and anonymous complaints over the handing of incidents involving children led to a more wide-ranging investigation into standards of care across the centre by the HSE last year. Some complainants claimed incident reports in relation to the behaviour of children were being deliberately “toned down” to present Ballydowd in a better light.
The HSE’s report found that these anonymous allegations were “unfounded and malicious”, according to a senior source.