By Michelle Crean

An unannounced HIQA inspection has given a Beaufort facility, which provides residential care for 29 residents with moderate or severe intellectual disability, its best ever report.

HIQA carried out an unannounced inspection of St Mary of the Angels in November with inspectors noting marked improvements in many areas since the last inspection only a year ago.

Out of 17 regulations that were inspected and marked, 14 were Compliant, three Substantially Compliant, and for first time ever, there were no non-compliances recorded.

In comparison, a previous inspection in November 2020 had seven Compliant, two Substantially Compliant and three Not Compliant judgments.

Improved ratings from 2020 to 2021 are in the following areas: Governance and Management: Not Compliant to Compliant, Notification of Incidents: Not Compliant to Compliant, Fire Precautions: Not Compliant to Compliant, General Welfare and Development: Substantially Compliant to Compliant.

Three areas in the current report are Substantially Compliant and plans are in place to address remaining concerns: Premises, Protection against infection, Residents' rights.

The major remedial item involves a significant amount of new furniture for all of the houses on the St Mary of the Angels campus, i.e. DC1 and DC2. This will be largely funded by the Parents and Relatives Association from previous fundraising efforts, including participation in the Ring of Kerry Charity Cycle in 2019. A substantial proportion (75%) of the furniture order has been delivered as of today.

According to the report all residents that were met appeared happy and content. Private and communal spaces within houses had been upgraded and were clean, bright and homely.

The inspectors found that the overall care and support for residents was properly resourced. A significant development from the previous inspection had been the resourcing of the service to have dedicated staff to support residents with meaningful activities of choice and greater social integration.

Individual care plans and person centred planning were further enhanced to improve residents lived experience. The effectiveness of previous care plans were assessed and findings incorporated into current care plans.

“HIQA plays an essential role in ensuring the appropriate standards of care are being upheld in residential settings throughout the country. Notwithstanding the ongoing challenges in service delivery within the intellectual disability sector, SJOG Community Services will seek at all times to meet the statutory standards of care. Last year our service recorded 92% compliance with the regulations nationally following 79 inspections conducted by HIQA across a range of our 94 designated centres," Saint John of God, who are the service provider in St Mary of the Angels, said in a statement.