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	The admission of nine children to an adult psychiatric unit in Kilkenny in breach of regulation has been criticised by the Mental Health Commission (MHC).</p>
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	When MHC inspectors visited the department of psychiatry at St Luke&rsquo;s Hospital in November 2015, they found nine children had been admitted since a previous inspection in March 2014. They were in the care of staff who did not appear to have any training in Children First, the national guidance for safeguarding children.</p>
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	However, the inspectors were informed the children had been looked after in single rooms with a nurse allocated solely for their care. All staff in the approved centre had been Garda vetted. None of the children was in the unit for more than nine days.</p>
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	Responding to the criticism, the HSE said training in Children First would be provided and that &ldquo;every effort is made to source age- appropriate facilities for all children requiring admission&rdquo;.</p>
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	There were 44 residents in the unit at the time of inspection, none of whom were children.</p>
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	A child was also admitted to Lakeview acute unit in Naas, Co Kildare.</p>
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	The MHC report said the child&rsquo;s clinical file &ldquo;obtained signed consent from the child&rsquo;s parent&rdquo;. One-to-one nursing was not facilitated.</p>
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	Inspectors were also critical of the use of security personnel in two episodes of seclusion at Lakeview over a six-month period in 2015 when it should have been medical or nursing personnel only.</p>
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	The MHC also conducted the first ever inspection of a new &euro;15m acute unit on Cork University Hospital campus. While it was largely positive, there was an issue around record-keeping vis-a-vis controlled drugs. Inspectors said as the record of the quantity of controlled drugs had been altered in a number of cases, without adequate documentation, and doctors did not record their Medical Council numbers in all instances of prescribing, the centre was not compliant with this regulation.</p>
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	&ldquo;This was regarded as a serious breach of the requirements relating to the handling of controlled drugs and was brought to the attention of a senior nurse during the course of the inspection,&rdquo; the report said.</p>
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	The issue of leaks was also raised by the inspectors who said that in the weeks prior to inspection last October, &ldquo;some leaks had occurred; these had been corrected with the exception of two leaks which had resulted in the decommissioning of one bedroom and the exercise room&rdquo;.</p>
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	On privacy, inspectors said 46 residents were accommodated in single rooms &ldquo;which afforded excellent privacy&rdquo;, but that there was a clear view of the rear garden and its occupants from two nearby houses. The HSE said screening will be provided later this year.</p>
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	(Published by the Irish Examiner on the 27th May 2016)</p>
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	<a href="http://www.irishexaminer.com/ireland/nine-children-admitted-to-psychiatric-unit-for-adults-401856.html">http://www.irishexaminer.com/ireland/nine-children-admitted-to-psychiatric-unit-for-adults-401856.html</a></p>
