Tag Archives: nursing home

Eight issues outstanding at Meelick facility says HIQA which also visited in February, May and July EIGHT breaches of national health regulations were detected in a Meelick nursing home following an unannounced inspection last September, according to the findings of a new report. Inspectors from the Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA) found Ennis Road Care Facility (ERCF) was non-compliant with changes to information supplied for registration purposes, persons in charge, staffing, governance and management, statement of purpose, infection control, fire precautions and residents’ rights. The inspectors acknowledged the efforts made by the registered provider to strengthen the governance and management of the centre including the recruitment and appointment of a nurse management team and 33 new staff. This was an unannounced risk-based inspection undertaken to follow up on the “poor inspection findings” in February, May and July 2020, all of which had identified issues with the governance and management of the service. Following the last inspection in July 2020, …

SHANNON students have been reaching out to residents of a nursing home who are unable to have visitors, letting them know they are not alone during the Covid-19 crisis. More than 80 students of St Caimin’s secondary school have written letters to the residents of Carrigoran House nursing home in Newmarket-on-Fergus. Students of the school usually visit Carrigoran at Easter time, but because of restrictions surrounding the pandemic this annual event had to be cancelled. School chaplain Cora Guinnane said that the letter writing was “the next best thing” and the students at the school were delighted to get involved. Cora explained that she and another teacher saw a similar initiative being carried out at a nursing home in Cork which had been a great success. “We thought it would be a fantastic idea to do with our students. So  I put the call out to students and teachers who would like to participate and we had a fantastic response. …

NURSING home operators in Clare have spoken of their fears after a dramatic rise in the number of Covid-19 clusters in such settings nationally. Some have revealed that they have had to introduce infection control procedures and cover the rising cost of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) themselves, while waiting for the recently-announced government supports to come on stream. Figures published on Wednesday by the Health Protection Surveillance Centre (HPSC) showed a total of 86 clusters at nursing homes across the country. The data, which was collected up to midnight on Sunday, shows three of these are in the Midwest and ten in the West, with the majority in the East of the country. “Clearly, nursing homes look after very immunocompromised people,” said Dr Billy O’Connell of Miltown Malbay. “An outbreak of Covid-19 could have terrible consequences.” While he welcomed the new Department of Health fund for PPE, training, advice and staff-testing, as well as the support of Health Information and …

A NURSING home developer has been given the green light to retain developments on the site of a former hotel in Meelick. Beech Lodge Care Facility had sought retention planning permission for changes to an application that was granted on September 15, 2015 on the site of the former Two Mile Inn Hotel, which closed in September 2010 with the loss of 15 jobs. All works have been constructed within the footprint of the permitted building works with no increase in floor area. Having regard to the approved care facility use on site, the policies of the current Development Plan and the pattern of development in the area, Clare County Council considered the proposed retention would not seriously injure the amenities of the area or of property in the vicinity and would be in accordance with the proper planning and sustainable development of the area. Modifications to elevations include reduction in window opening sizes, addition of new windows, addition of …

A €3.5 MILLION investment has been made in elderly care at Cahercalla with a comprehensive refurbishment bringing the well known Clare Nursing Home up to HIQA regulatory standards. According to those at the facility the investment will greatly enhance the care, stay and safety experience for current and future residents. All of the bedrooms in the three- storey 1960s nursing home have now been renovated and redecorated. Uniquely based on a community model, Cahercalla Nursing Home which employs 130 people, has been a hugely significant facility and service to people and families throughout county Clare. The new developments bring the 111 bedded Nursing Home in line with the highest care standards deserved by the elderly who have contributed so much to life within the county. According to Paula O’Halloran, CEO of Cahercalla Hospital and Hospice, the refurbishment has not alone physically transformed the Nursing Home but has created a “home from home” atmosphere among residents, visitors and staff. She also …

A CLARE mother is facing the grim prospect of being forced to sell her family home or pay up to €114,000 over the next five years to cover the cost of long-term care for her incapacitated husband. Councillor Tom McNamara has claimed the mother is getting a “raw deal” under the Fair Deal Nursing Homes Support Scheme because the needs of her two dependant children are not taken into account, due to an anomaly. Councillor McNamara has requested Health Minister Dr James Reilly to change the current legislation to alleviate the distress being caused to this mother, as well as other similar hardship cases. Under the existing scheme, the couple are jointly assessed to pay €600 weekly on top of the Fair Deal allowance to cover the cost of the husband’s long-term residential care in a Clare nursing home. However, the most the mother can pay is €700 a month, leaving the remainder as a burden, which continues indefinitely on …