A NEW REPORT prepared by the health watchdog has revealed that children detained in a special care unit in county Cork feel unsafe because of bullying and assaults by other residents.
Inspectors from the Health Information and Quality Association (HIQA) heard during interviews with the teenage girls that there are still occasions where they feel unsafe because of incidents of alleged bullying, targeting and assaults.
This remains unacceptable, they said.
The report, published today, on the secure residential unit in Glanmire was a follow-up to an inspection in October 2011 which found the facility in a “state of crisis”.
HIQA found that a poor standard of management impacted negatively on the delivery of care to the children living in the unit. After making a series of recommendations, a second inspection was carried out between 11 and 12 January 2012.
Five children – girls aged between 15 and 17 – are currently detained at Gleann Alainn under a High Court order on the basis that they pose a serious risk to themselves or others.
They have been placed in Gleann Alainn for between one and 14 months.
Inspectors from HIQA were satisfied that “some progress” was made in respect to each of the recommendations, with an increase in accountability and responsibility of staff and management.
However, concerns remain. ”The cyclical nature of crisis within the special care service nationally was highlighted,” said the report’s authors.
Separately, several external professionals told inspectors that although they too could “acknowledge some progress” within the centre, their confidence in the service to be sustainable or to improve was “poor”.
Considering the significant concerns in relation to safety, security and management highlighted in the last report, the ability to sustain this progress is paramount.
One of the worrying findings from last month’s inspection was that one of the residents had been separated from the other children for a period of 23 days and no records were kept of the incident.
The unit manager told inspectors that the child was at “huge risk” of absconding but there was serious concern about the method of single separation in this instance because it is unclear as to why the period was so long, what decision making process were involved and the outcomes for the child.
Eight different complaints had been made by two children in the period from October 2011 to January 2012.
The High Court orders provide for the liberty of the child to be restricted to secure their safety and welfare needs but since the last inspection, the time their bedrooms are locked was changed from 7.30pm to 9pm.
The children interviewed were happy with this change since October.
There are 24 HSE staff at Gleann Alainn but six are currently on long-term leave. Eight agency staff work on a full-time basis but three more are available for relief work.
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