Earlier this week, we published an overview report on our inspection findings in residential centres for people with disabilities in 2021.
During the year, we carried out 1,220 inspections, finding that the majority of centres provided a good standard of care and support to people with disabilities. However, the findings highlighted increasing non-compliance with oversight and management of centres.
Speaking about the importance of governance, our Deputy Chief Inspector with responsibility for disability services, Finbarr Colfer, said:
“An effectively governed designated centre is one that is well managed, with good internal systems and oversight arrangements in place to ensure the residents’ needs, wellbeing and quality of life are prioritised. This enables providers to ensure that any deficiencies in the quality and safety of the care and support or in the day-to-day running of the centre are addressed in a timely manner. Where these systems are not in place, it impacts on the quality of care residents receive.
“In 2021, while we found that most centres coped well during the height of the pandemic, there were changes in how centres were governed. Many centres established remote or off-site management and oversight arrangements during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. Last year, we found that the centres which continued to be managed from a distance demonstrated higher levels of non-compliance.
“One in five inspections completed in 2021 found that improvements were required to the provider’s governance and management arrangements, with non-compliance increasing throughout the year. This non-compliance ultimately impacted on the quality and safety of care for residents. On top of this, we found that the longer the oversight arrangements remained at arm’s length, the greater the decline in the standard of care.
“As services begin to emerge from the peaks of the pandemic, it is important that providers regularise their governance and management arrangements to ensure that all designated centres are operated effectively and efficiently to meet the needs of all those in receipt of care and support.”
Read the full report here.