Michael Fitzmaurice (Roscommon-Galway, Independent)
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571. To ask the Minister for Health if the HSE will clarify the review that is being undertaken to deal with matters (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [34950/16]

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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The Mental Health Commission is charged with inspecting every approved mental health centre at least once a year and producing a report on this inspection. The Commission has now published its report on the Midlands Regional Hospital in Portlaoise. It found that this hospital was non-compliant in terms of Individual Care Plans and the administration of medicines.

To deal with these issues, the hospital has convened a multi-disciplinary working group to develop a new Individual Care Plan template and appointed a pharmacist to oversee the administration of medicines.

The report also found that there were issues in relation to the admission of children and the use of seclusion in the hospital.

The hospital has taken the following corrective actions:

- A Policy on the Use of Seclusion has been updated to include provision for the frequency of training and identifies appropriately qualified persons to deliver that training.

- There will be a daily review of seclusion orders by second Consultant Psychiatrist.

- Seclusion training will be provided for all staff.

- All children will be admitted to a single room with 1:1 nursing care.

Having ensured that any immediate safety concerns have been addressed the HSE is now working at all levels within the Mental Health Division on a programme of work to ensure that the services offered in Portlaoise are not only safe, but of the highest possible quality. There is daily and weekly monitoring of this work at regional and national levels respectively. I am satisfied that the hospital concerned is making progress in relation to the issues raised in the reports.

The Department will, however, continue to closely monitor the issues raised in the Mental Health Commission report, in conjunction with the HSE, to ensure that the necessary corrective actions have been taken.