Mental Health Commission finds 'high risk non compliance' at Kilkenny hospital

Almost half of the treatment ‘teams’ at the Department of Psychiatry in St Luke’s General Hospital in Kilkenny had no appointed psychologist , during the latest inspection by the Mental Health Commission.

Despite an excellent overall rating of 91%, higher than the national average, the lack of dedicated psychologists was described as a ‘high risk area of non-compliance’ by the commission.

The posts remaining unfilled meant that ‘the number and skill mix’ of staff was ‘not sufficient to meet the psychological needs of all residents’, according to the Commission.

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The Mental Health Commission published inspection reports on the Department of Psychiatry and St Gabriel’s Ward, located in the grounds of St Canice’s Hospital in Kilkenny, just before Christmas.
St Gabriel’s Ward was deemed to be 97% compliant, a slight drop from last year’s 100% rating.

Compliance
St Luke’s was found to have three high-risk instances of non-compliance which related to premises, staffing, and the rules governing seclusion facilities. A high-risk rating is the second highest level of non-compliance.

The rules governing the use of seclusion facilities were found to be non-compliant in relation to the area of privacy and dignity.
The report found that ligature points were not minimised to the lowest practicable level, despite this issue having been previously identified in an audit report. The overall premises were found to be kept in a good state. The communal television room in the Sycamore Ward, which has capacity for 25 residents, was not appropriately sized.

Plans have been put in place at St Luke’s to address the high-risk issues raised in the inspection report. A new communal space is being provided, and funding is to be secured to minimise the remaining ligature points. Psychology staffing has been increased since the inspection and further action will be taken in this area. Changes are also being made to the way in which the seclusion facility is operated.

St Gabriel’s Ward
St Gabriel’s Ward, located in the grounds of St Canice’s Hospital, accommodates residents under the psychiatry of later life and continuing care and is a dementia-friendly centre with a number of specific initiatives for the care and treatment of elderly people.

St Gabriel’s was found to have one low-risk incidence of non-compliance by the inspectors in relation to the premises - the centre was not consistently maintained in good decorative order as there were scratches on a radiator in one bedroom and some chipped paint on a relaxation room wall. Plans are in place to address the issues raised in the inspection report.
Both centres were praised by the Commission for introducing a number of quality initiatives during the year.

Ber Nugent, Ian Coulter and Eamon Carroll

Over 100 lots of fine art, jewellery, craft, collectibles and VIP tickets went under the hammer at a special auction at Lyrath Estate Hotel prior to Christmas.

The Butler Gallery Christmas Benefit Auction was held in partnership with Fonsie Mealy Auctioneers. It was a great opportunity to buy a great piece of art, at a very reasonable price, as a fundraiser with a portion of the sale price going to the artists who were very generous with their estimates.

Butler Gallery director Anna O' Sullivan thanked all those who attended, and the artists who contributed work.

"We thank them all for their involvement with this auction along with Fonsie Mealy Auctioneers and Lyrath Hotel. This event couldn’t happen without them," she said.

Click through to see the pictures by Vicky Comerford

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