We continue to inspect and monitor the governance and safeguarding arrangements in HSE services for people with disabilities in Co. Donegal to ensure the safety and wellbeing of people using services.
On 29 April, we published an overview report into the HSE’s governance and oversight of designated centres, and its safeguarding arrangements, for people with disabilities in Co. Donegal. Read it here.
The overview report summarised the findings of an unannounced targeted review programme across the provider’s designated centres in January 2022. The programme was initiated in response to both historical and recent concerns about the effectiveness of governance in designated centres in community healthcare organisation 1 (CHO1), and the HSE’s ability to ensure the wellbeing of residents.
The programme’s main focus was on whether all current safeguarding concerns were being identified and appropriately responded to by the provider and whether there was appropriate oversight of centres to ensure residents were safe and had a good quality of life. We found that governance arrangements across the HSE’s designated centres in Co. Donegal required significant improvement to ensure the wellbeing of residents and to effectively respond to any safeguarding or behavioural concerns.
In response to our targeted programme, the HSE submitted a detailed improvement plan on how it would address the issues identified at local team and national level.
Our Deputy Chief Inspector, Finbarr Colfer said: “We have now commenced an inspection programme to not just verify that the provider is implementing their actions, but also to confirm that the provider is achieving improvements in the safety and the quality of life of residents. In addition, inspectors will be assessing whether the provider has sufficient oversight arrangements in place to ensure that improvements are built on and sustained into the future, and that the rights of residents are being protected and promoted in designated centres in Co. Donegal.”
Since the targeted inspection programme began in January 2022, HIQA has carried out nine inspections of designated centres across Donegal and has published the inspection reports for four of those inspections. The other inspection reports will be published in due course. Inspection findings give early indications that the provider is committed to achieving its objectives as described in its improvement plan, and we have observed initiatives which have been introduced to strengthen governance arrangements. In addition, the provider has addressed some of the compatibility issues for residents and this has resulted in improvements in safety and quality of life for residents in those centres. While there has been progress noted in these initial inspections, inspectors will continue to monitor these centres to ensure that further improvements in the lived experience of residents are achieved.
HIQA will continue with the programme of inspection planned for 2022 in Co. Donegal to confirm that the HSE is implementing its improvement plan, that the plan is delivering improvements for residents and that those improvements are sustained into the future.