HIQA reveals several issues at Holy Ghost Home
Holy Ghost Home, Cork Road, Waterford
A recent report has revealed several inconsistencies at the Holy Ghost Nursing Home.
The report by the Health Information & Quality Authority (HIQA) painted a generally positive overview of the centre, while highlighting several issues.
The centre, located on the Cork Road, was found to be 'not compliant' in the following four categories: training and staff development, governance and management, notification of incidents, individual assessment and care plan.
It was deemed as 'substantially compliant' in another four categories: communication difficulties, temporary absence or discharge of residents, infection control and fire precautions.
The centre was inspected during an unannounced visit over two days in early July 2024. There were 58 residents in the centre at the time of inspection.
The report began that all the residents at the home were contented and enthusiastic about their living in the Holy Ghost home.
It described the interiors as being 'attractive' and 'welcoming' with a peaceful atmosphere. It read: "There was a relaxed and unhurried atmosphere in the centre, and staff were seen responding to resident requests promptly and respectfully. Residents were up and dressed in their preferred attire and appeared well-supported."
There was an issue over the training of staff and oversight.
The report stated: "Non-nursing staff administering medication, including insulin, did not have training or an assessment of their competency to perform this role safely. There were no documented supervision or oversight systems to monitor non-nursing staff administrating medication. The provider's staff supervision structures had not identified that staff were not implementing local policies on medication administration and management in practice."
There was also an issue of governance pertaining to the care and management of residents. It stated: "The oversight systems in place to ensure individual assessments and care plans were completed correctly, and care plans were developed that accurately reflected the residents' care needs needed to be more robustly monitored."
Regarding the issue of notifying incidents, it stated: "three incidents in which residents required immediate hospital admission for injury assessment after a fall in the centre had not been notified to the Office of the Chief Inspector of Social Services within the required time frames.
There was a designated smoking area for the residents that contained fire protection equipment. The report stated: "the inspector observed a cigarette box containing extinguished cigarette butts in the centre's internal garden. This area did not have the necessary protective equipment to support residents to smoke safely and protect them in the event of a fire."
Smoking and fire safety precautions were a re-occurring issue in the report. The inspector found "the storage of a large volume of combustible items, such as clothing and books, directly under a large fuse box in the sacristy lobby." The inspector confirmed this storage had not been risk-assessed and deemed safe.
There was a recommendation to improve fire drill procedures.
