Sheila Terry (Fine Gael)

I welcome the Minister to the House and extend my sympathies to her and her party on the untimely death of Senator Kate Walsh. We will miss her greatly and very moving speeches were made by many Senators in the House yesterday. She was loved by all of us here and may she rest in peace.

I welcome the establishment of this commission of investigation as it will give some comfort to families who had parents who died in the care of that nursing home. Many families still have questions in the wake of Professor O'Neill's report that require more complete answers. The families deserve these answers as do all of us. We need to know what went on and why the systems in place failed so badly to care for the residents of that home. We must welcome the fact that the deficiencies in the running of Leas Cross nursing home came into the public domain because it is obvious they existed for some time with many people consequently suffering.

As the Minister said, we all want the best for older people and this is what they deserve. Putting a loved one in a nursing home is the last thing a family wants to do but in some cases it is the only way to ensure a person receives the right care. This is where the problem lies. Families placed loved ones in Leas Cross nursing home with the best intentions but they did not receive the best of care. I am glad we are now to examine the inspections system and to consider how nursing homes are run. It has taken two years to set up this commission and to do so earlier would have been appropriate. I appreciate, however, that Professor O'Neill's report had to be completed first.

My colleague in the other House, Deputy O'Dowd, asked whether the scope of the commission of inquiry's investigations would extend to all patients of St. Ita's Hospital in Portrane who were transferred to long-term care. Given that the commission's terms of reference include the circumstances surrounding the transfer of patients from other facilities to the nursing homes, will it deal with the issue of patients from St. Ita's Hospital who were transferred to nursing homes other than Leas Cross or will it focus specifically on the Leas Cross nursing home?

As a result of changes in society many people are unable to care for older relatives in their homes, as was frequently the case ten, 20 or 30 years ago. Whether it is because society requires that people work or people want to work or whether it is due to a lack of space in family homes, people do not have the wherewithal to look after elderly relatives. The problem will worsen in future. As the Minister and Senators will agree, it is essential, therefore, that nursing homes operate to the highest standards and perhaps we took this for granted in the past. I hope the inspectorate will ensure the standards introduced recently are upheld. Any owner or manager of a nursing home that does not meet the required standards must be dealt with severely.

We cannot afford to have mistakes because those living in nursing homes are elderly and vulnerable and, in many cases, unable to voice concerns. We place so much trust in those who care for the elderly that we must demand of them the highest standards and deal with them severely if they do not meet those standards. I hope this does not become necessary and we ensure standards are met. It is unfortunate that nursing homes must be subject to continuous checks.

I welcome the establishment of the commission of inquiry, as will the families and loved ones of those affected by the Leas Cross scandal, although another investigation will probably cause them further pain. People are entitled to answers and matters such as these must be fully investigated.

I commend the Minister for establishing the commission of inquiry. I am not sure if she referred to a timeframe for the publication of its report. I hope it will not take long because the matter must be concluded as quickly as possible for all the families involved.