The public inquiry into the abuse of vulnerable people at Muckamore Abbey Hospital has found “profound and deeply troubling” failures in their care.
The long-awaited inquiry report found that restrictive practices were used inappropriately and that “as needed” medication was overused and “left some patients zombified”.
It also said the CCTV footage was “essential in revealing the truth” at the Co Antrim facility for adults with severe learning disabilities and mental health needs.
“The people who lived at Muckamore Abbey Hospital deserved better and their families deserved better,” said inquiry chairman, barrister Tom Kark.
The inquiry’s central finding was that a policy shift, beginning in 2001, to move all patients with learning disabilities and autism from hospital into community-based care, was not matched with investment.
As a result, many patients could not be safely discharged due to a lack of capacity in the community. This led to significant delays in resettlement, heightened distress, and in some cases readmission to Muckamore hospital.
The inquiry also found there was “insufficient” staffing at all levels, leading to unsafe wards, and restrictive practices were used inappropriately.
Staff instability, increased violence, high use of restrictive practices and repeated complaints were “visible and known”.
Muckamore Abbey Hospital in Co Antrim has also been at the centre of the UK’s biggest police investigation into the alleged abuse of vulnerable adults. Photograph: Liam McBurney/PA
A lack of activities for patients often led to “frustration, boredom and dysregulated behaviour” and Muckamore became more dysfunctional “and less homely” as time went on.
Peer-on-peer abuse “escalated dramatically” and was not recognised as a warning sign, the inquiry found.
It also found that “as needed” medication, also known as pro re nata (PRN) medication, was overused as a tool of restraint which left some patients “zombified”.
It found that seclusion was misused as punishment for so-called “bad behaviour” and was not properly monitored.
There was a “closed culture” among staff, which discouraged reporting of poor behaviour, and many families said they were frightened to complain in case it impacted on the care their relatives received.
Systems and structures in place were “wholly inadequate” to manage the scale of abuse uncovered through a review of CCTV footage in 2017.
The inquiry has made 106 recommendations and proposes reforms in response to the “profound catalogue of failures”, including “ineffective” external inspection regimes, and serious failures in governance within the Belfast Health and Social Care Trust which led to the erosion of oversight at the care facility over many years.
It said the health trust treated each complaint in isolation, preventing any recognition of wider patterns emerging over time.
Speaking at the publication of the report, Kark paid tribute to the residents of Muckamore and their families for being “central to uncovering the truth”.
“While the publication of this report cannot undo the harm suffered, it is my hope that it will serve as a turning point.
“The responsibility to act on the recommendations now lies with those who lead, manage and deliver health and social care services across Northern Ireland.”
He said the amount of recommendations reflect “the depth of evidence heard and the seriousness of the failures uncovered”.
“The inquiry’s report has been formally submitted to the Minister of Health.
“Implementation must begin immediately and monitored rigorously. The lessons from Muckamore Abbey Hospital are stark. This cannot be allowed to happen again.
“There should be no delay, no dilution, and no sidestepping in the delivery of the recommendations.”
The hospital has also been at the centre of the UK’s largest-ever police investigation into the alleged abuse of vulnerable adults and a number of prosecutions are continuing.
Kark said it was “highly unusual” for a public inquiry to take place simultaneously with a large police investigation and criminal trial proceedings.
A memorandum of understanding was entered with the police and the Public Prosecution Service in Northern Ireland to ensure the inquiry did not interfere with the criminal proceedings. – PA
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