Inspectors raise serious concerns after Galway nursing home patient discovery
The unannounced inspection of the nursing home saw the watchdog identify red-rated, high-risk non-compliance factors
HIQA has raised concerns about fire safety at a Galway nursing home after inspectors found a resident smoking in a shed full of combustible materials due to the absence of a designated smoking area inside.
The unannounced inspection of Hillside Nursing Home in Aughrim, near Ballinasloe, also uncovered significant failings in night-time staffing, management oversight, and the handling of complaints.
The centre was found to be non-compliant in five out of 14 regulations assessed by the Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA), with another five deemed only substantially compliant.
Inspectors noted that there was no designated smoking area for residents, prompting officials to issue an immediate risk mitigation request on the morning of the visit. When appropriate action had still not been taken by midday, a second immediate action request had to be issued to the provider.
The watchdog identified red-rated, high-risk non-compliance with fire precautions after finding that both management and staff were unclear about compartment boundaries and safe zones in the building.
This confusion severely impacted fire drills, as workers did not know how many residents were located in each compartment or how many needed to be evacuated to safety during an emergency.
Inspectors also raised concerns over staffing levels during the night, when just one nurse and one carer were on duty with 23 residents. The inspectors determined that this ratio was insufficient to ensure residents could be safely evacuated in the event of a fire.
In addition, senior management lacked up-to-date training on fire containment and evacuation procedures, while care staff had not been trained in managing responsive behaviours.
A review of internal records further revealed that a potential safeguarding incident had been recorded in the centre’s incident log but had never been investigated or screened in accordance with national abuse protection policies.
Inspectors also found that statutory quarterly incident reports required by law had not been submitted to the chief inspector.
A medicines cupboard in the nurses’ station was observed to be unlocked throughout the inspection, posing a potential risk of harm to residents, the report noted.
The inspection also highlighted basic premises defects affecting resident dignity and daily living. A shared bathroom lacked an internal lock, an ensuite door in a shared bedroom failed to close fully, and an electrical fault restricted residents to a maximum shower time of eight minutes to avoid tripping the circuit breaker.
Residents were also unable to access the internet from their bedrooms due to poor WiFi coverage, forcing them into communal areas to conduct private personal activities online.
In response to the inspection findings, the registered provider, Mary Nuala Cormican, stated that an emergency on-call roster had been introduced to ensure a minimum of two additional staff were available to respond to any night-time emergency.
Ms Cormican added that a safe, designated smoking area was scheduled for completion on August 28, and confirmed that faulty bathroom facilities had been repaired by a qualified electrician and maintenance personnel in July.