'Residents supported in news reading, bingo and chair exercises' - Ballyconnell care facility receives full compliance judgement in HIQA report

The Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA) has published 50 inspection reports on residential centres for older people. Inspections were carried out between February 2024 and August 2024.

The Chief Inspector of Social Services has statutory responsibility for independently regulating designated centres for older people for compliance with the Health Act (2007) Regulations and the National Standards for Residential Care Settings for Older People in Ireland (2016), to ensure that the people living in these services are safe and well cared for.

Of the fifty reports published, inspectors found evidence of good practice and compliance with the regulations and standards in a number of inspections. 

A further eighteen centres were either fully compliant or substantially compliant with the regulations.

In general, these centres were found to be meeting residents’ needs and delivering care in line with the national standards and regulations.

Where non-compliance with the regulations was identified, providers were required to submit compliance plans to demonstrate how they will make improvements and come into compliance with the regulations.

On the day of the inspection, the Falcarragh Community Hospital accommodated eleven residents, and the residents who spoke with the inspector expressed their satisfaction with the ongoing building renovations and were looking forward to being accommodated in single bedrooms.

Some residents' comments were that the centre was "a nice place to live in, they were able to make their own choices and decisions on what to do each day, there was always a choice of food available in this centre and their preferences were respected."

The centre is located in Falcarragh town and is currently comprised of two units, namely the Tory and Gola wings. The residents who required long-term care were currently accommodated in the Gola unit, which had originally been intended to accommodate short-stay residents, while the long-term residential unit on the Tory wing was undergoing refurbishment and fire safety improvement works.

Upon arrival, the inspector met with a clinical nurse manager who was deputising for the person in charge, as the person in charge of this centre was deputising during leave by the provider representative and attended the inspection.

The inspector observed that residents were well-groomed and appropriately dressed in their preferred clothing. Staff interactions with residents were "respectful and kind."

The inspector saw residents spending their time in the day rooms, and social activities were taking place for residents as scheduled. Staff were observed supporting residents with participating in social activities that were meaningful to them and in line with their choices and preferences.

For example, residents were supported in news reading, bingo and chair exercises on the day of the inspection.

The facility received a judgement of full compliance across all areas, most notably staffing, governance and management and notification of incidents.