Ms Eileen O'Callaghan:

The huge issue with the policy at present is that it applies to HSE and HSE-funded services so private nursing homes are left out of it, as is the community. HSE and HSE-funded services have a designated officer who is usually trained, and Mr. Healy mentioned the 30,000 who have been trained. They are trained to recognise abuse, notice the signals and refer. They usually get good support from their local safeguarding team. However, there are huge inconsistencies throughout the country. There is no standard operating protocol or procedure that is consistent to the nine CHOs. In north Dublin we might get a very good response but we may not get the same response in Cork or Kerry. A vulnerable person does not know what response he or she will get.

In private nursing homes, as mentioned by Mr. Healy and Mr. Taylor, there is some really good engagement. Some private nursing homes really want support. However, when they pick up the phone to their local safeguarding team that team is not obliged to support them because they are private nursing homes. Again, this discrepancy falls on who picks up the phone and the response is dependent on this. Our major concern is what is happening in the community. There are no designated officers in the community.. It often falls to the public health nurse or the primary care social worker to respond, and they are often left to case manage. What happens is someone the community with his or her own job is left to actively assess the situation, see what is going on and provide support. This falls back to the lack of any standard operating procedure and that the resources are not sufficient. We have been consistently told by safeguarders on the ground they are not sufficiently resourced to respond. In the HSE and HSE-funded services there are designated officers who will respond accordingly, but what is happening in the areas where we are not involved?