HSE apologises to residents of Donegal care home who faced sexual assaults over a decade from another resident

The HSE chief Paul Reid has apologised to the residents and their families of an HSE-run Donegal care home following a report revealed that the residents there were sexually assaulted for over a decade.

“These events, as we have seen them and from the reports, have shocking consequences for many people. The facts are very clear: vulnerable people were sexually abused while in our care.” Mr. Reid said in the wake of a report called ‘Brandon report’ by an HSE panel.

The unfortunate incidents took place in St Joseph’s hospital in Stranorlar for adults with intellectual disabilities. The management and staffs were continuously neglecting the assaults carried out by another resident even they have full knowledge. This resident is called ‘Brandon’ in the report.

The incidents of assault took place during a period from 2003 to 2016 and the public knew about them only after an anonymous person from the care home contacted a local TD regarding this. Following the whistle-blower’s revelation, HSE appointed National Independent Review Panel (NIRP) to carry out and investigation and to submit a detailed report.

Brandon was admitted to the care home back in 1991 and the first case of sexual assault was reported in 1997. But the incidents the NIRP investigated are from 2003 to 2016 and found 108 incidents of such have taken place. Brandon had died in April 2020.

After each assault, the management would transfer Brandon to a different ward, but it actually helped him to find new victims. The management also never informed the residents’ families about these assaults. The report called it ‘an outdated medical culture, a legacy of bullying in the facility, and a ‘lack of external management oversight and leadership from the HSE.’

The HSE said today that upon receipt of the report last year, it acted immediately to seek assurance as to the current safety of the residents within the relevant service. 

Regular safeguarding meetings are taking place within the disability service, which “has undergone significant reforms” generally and specifically in response to the Brandon Report’s findings. 

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