Michael Ring (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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Question 265: To ask the Minister for Health and Children if she will provide this Deputy with a copy of the most up to date Health Service Executive building regulations and specifications for nursing homes. [9019/08]

Máire Hoctor (Tipperary North, Fianna Fail)
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The Board of the Health Information and Quality Authority recently submitted draft National Quality Standards for Residential Care Settings for Older People in Ireland for the approval of the Minister for Health and Children, as required under section 10(2) of the Health Act, 2007. These draft standards contain specifications in relation to amongst other things, environmental aspects of nursing homes, including room sizes, number of bathrooms etc. The initial draft, published by HIQA on 8 August, 2007 for public consultation is available at www.hiqa.ie.

The Standards and the Regulations required to underpin them will be subject to a Regulatory Impact Assessment (RIA) before finalisation. The RIA process is expected to commence shortly and both the Standards and Regulations can be expected to be in place later this year.

In the meantime the nursing home sector is governed by the Health (Nursing Homes) Act 1990 and subsequent regulations. The Nursing Home (Care and Welfare) Regulations, 1993 set out the standards which the private nursing home sector must adhere to for the purpose of registration under the Health (Nursing Homes) Act, 1990. Copies of this legislation are available from Government Publications. They are also available at www.irishstatutebook.ie. The Health Service Executive inspects private nursing homes on the basis of these standards. All inspections are unannounced and nursing homes are now inspected at least twice a year. Reports of inspections are published on HSE website.

The Deputy will be aware that there is an obligation on the person -in-charge of the nursing home to meet and comply fully with all relevant statutory provisions (e.g. Planning Acts and Regulations, Building Regulations and HACCP Regulations etc).

Operational responsibility for the management and delivery of health and personal social services was assigned to the Health Service Executive under the Health Act 2004. Therefore, the Executive is the appropriate body to consider the particular matter raised by the Deputy. My Department has requested the Parliamentary Affairs Division of the Executive to arrange to have the matter investigated and to have a reply issued directly to the Deputy.