News
HIQA report praises Beaufort care facility

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.
News
Eight month wait for a driving test in Killarney
A Killarney councillor is calling for action in an effort to reduce the driving test wait list in Killarney The current wait list for a test in Killarney sits at […]

A Killarney councillor is calling for action in an effort to reduce the driving test wait list in Killarney
The current wait list for a test in Killarney sits at eight months.
Cllr John O’Donoghue raised the issue at Monday’s full meeting of Kerry County Council.
He proposed that driving instructors should be employed to carry out the final test to reduce the current backlog.
At Monday’s meeting he asked that hat Kerry County Council would write to the Minister for Transport to ask him to consider giving driving instructors temporary powers to issue a temporary Driving Licence/Certificate of Competence to those on the waiting list for tests.
“The wait is currently far too long and the system is in danger of becoming completely overwhelmed,” he said.
“The huge waiting list for young drivers is well documented at this stage. In a case I am familiar with, a young person passed their theory test in January 2022 and he immediately applied for his mandatory 12 driving lessons. When these were completed, he applied for his driving test on the 2nd of December 2022. Some weeks ago, he still had not received an application to apply for his driving test. This wait is placing him and his family under considerable extra cost and stress which is completely unacceptable.”
In the course of his research into the matter Cllr O’Donoghue discovered that the next available date for a driving test in Killarney is May 25, 2024, while Tralee is June 3 2024.
“Bear in mind, these are only the dates on which you receive an invitation to book your test, the test itself will then be an estimated three to five weeks later.
“This is an appalling situation and one which needs to be rectified as a matter of urgency. I am proposing that driving instructors, which presumably are fully trained up on the rules of the road, be granted temporary powers to be allowed to issue temporary driving licences to young people. When the waiting list time has been reduced, I would still propose that these people sit the test as usual, but the current pressure needs to be alleviated as soon as possible. There is precedent as I believe that in the 1970s, a cohort in this country were issued driving licences without having sat a test as the wait time for the test was too long.”
News
Ballymac charity vintage run on October 1
The Ballymac Vintage Club is hosting a classic car, tractor and Honda 50 run on October 1. The run will leave from and return to the Halfway Bar, Ballymac. Registration […]

The Ballymac Vintage Club is hosting a classic car, tractor and Honda 50 run on October 1.
The run will leave from and return to the Halfway Bar, Ballymac.
Registration begins at 9:30am and sets off at 11am.
“There will be two separate routes with one for tractors and the other for cars and motorbikes. Proceeds on the day are in aid of Castleisland Day Care Centre and we’ll have plenty of spot prizes to giveaway too in the morning,” said the club’s PRO Kieran Glover.
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