Mary Lou McDonald (Dublin Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I wish to raise the governance review into allegations of sexual assault at a HSE-run nursing home, which was published today. It outlines harrowing failures to protect vulnerable people and is a very distressing story for us all. It reflects, again, that there is much work to be done to protect and safeguard vulnerable people. In 2020, a healthcare assistant who worked at the home was jailed for 11 years for rape. The victim, known by the pseudonym "Emily", was a resident at the home. The review into the handling of this case uncovered that other residents had made allegations against the same healthcare assistant in the past. However, their serious allegations were not followed up with a safeguarding report and some were dismissed as residents being confused or hallucinating. None were followed up, as should have been the case in line with HSE safeguarding policy. This is a devastating incident that will cause unimaginable distress and trauma for the victims, their families and all of the residents at the home; and my thoughts are with them today. Emily and the other residents who came forward to report attacks have been let down in the most horrific way. The review is damning but it is not the first damning report. The Taoiseach will recall the "Brandon" report in County Donegal, another case in which one person stepping forward exposed similar issues around safeguarding. Today’s report must be a watershed moment. The chief executive of the HSE, Bernard Gloster, said the HSE will do all it can to ensure that safeguarding for all people in care homes is at the highest level of priority. I welcome that because we all must ensure that vulnerable adults are never failed in this way again. Victims must be treated with the dignity they deserve.

Tá an t-athbhreithniú ar fhoréigean gnéis i dteach altranais an HSE millteanach. Éilíonn sé gníomh práinneach chun daoine atá i gcontúirt a chosaint. Tá dualgas ar an Rialtas a chinntiú go bhfuil cosaintí i bhfeidhm.

The National Independent Review Panel, NIRP, issued nine recommendations in its report, which must now be implemented without delay; I am sure the Taoiseach will agree. They include the establishment of a working group to examine and reform how residential facilities for older people operate to ensure they are in line with international best practice. It also includes putting in place a staff awareness campaign to ensure that older people who are victims of sexual abuse are believed and that safeguarding allegations are always taken seriously. It also recommends better management of patients’ notes to ensure that concerns or signs of abuse are recorded and identified early.

There are a number of steps the Government can take to improve protections for vulnerable adults. Adult safeguarding legislation is needed to put legal obligations on service providers to prevent such violence being committed and to hold organisations and individuals to account for failing to protect people at risk. The legislation has been pending for some years but the need for it is now critical; indeed, I heard the Minister for Justice speaking about it again this morning. I call on the Government to commit to the urgent delivery of this legislation. Can we all work together to ensure that vulnerable adults have the support and protections they need and that this review and its nine recommendations are taken seriously and prioritised? Can we work across the House to ensure that all of this is acted upon in order that such a harrowing incident is not repeated?

See this speech in context