Rose Conway-Walsh confronts nursing home neglect and care commodification
Rose Conway-Walsh criticised an RTE primetime exposé of nursing homes and condemned the lack of compassion and respect shown to residents. She challenged the minister on safeguards for operators with legal cases, denounced the profit model of care, and cited the Sinn Féin alternative budget's investment in public nursing home and community beds, noting 1,200 beds last year.
RTE exposé and residents' treatment
She described the recent RTE primetime programme as "shocking and shameful," saying the lack of compassion shown to residents was appalling and would have caused pain and worry to those affected and their families. She commended RTE for exposing the issues but said it should not be left to broadcasters to reveal such atrocities.
Questions for the minister on provider oversight
She asked the minister what protections and due diligence exist to prevent companies with legal cases in other EU member states from operating in the care sector, calling the absence of such safeguards neglectful. She directly questioned whether any checks are carried out on operators working in care.
Critique of the profit model of care
She argued that the shocking neglect was the "logical outworkings of commodification of care" and criticised the profit-driven model that encourages large-scale operations focused on maximising returns. She held both Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael responsible for the policy choices that created the current system.
Support for family and community nursing homes
She praised family-run and community nursing homes that provide compassionate care and said small nursing homes need support and their staff must be protected. She reiterated that her party's alternative budget allocates funding for more public nursing home and community beds, referencing the 1,200 beds provided last year.
Staffing, pay and the COVID enquiry
She called for safe staffing levels to be mandatory and highlighted poor pay and conditions for healthcare workers, including zero hour contracts and minimum wage pay that she described as "disgraceful." She said these workers faced impossible situations during COVID and voiced support for calls for a COVID enquiry to examine those experiences.
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The recent primetime expose was shocking and shameful and the sheer lack of compassion and respect shown to the residents in that program was appalling. We can only imagine the pain that they and their families, as well as others, the worry it's caused to others, is as a result of this. I do want to commend RTE. It should not be up to RTE to expose these atrocities that are going on. My first question is, Minister, what protections are in place to prevent companies who have legal cases against them and other EU member states from operating in our care sector and indeed another care sector? Is there any due diligence, anything carried out whatsoever? I think that is the first thing that's neglectful. These shocking levels of neglect are, however, the logical outworkings of commodification of care. What we have in this state is the profit model of care which lends itself to large-scale operations driven by profit maximisation, as was said. We must move away from the over-dependence on this model and that's why each year in the Sinn Féin alternative budget we allocate investment in providing more public nursing home and community beds. That was for 1,200 beds last year. I want to commend the family-run nursing homes and many others, of which I know even in my own county, who provide excellent care in a compassionate and appropriate way for elderly people. As was said, in terms of the community nursing homes as well, and it beggars belief as to why the government changed policy. Now there is a responsibility here on both Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael for this model. This model didn't just appear out of nowhere, it was government policy. So it's no good coming in here commentating on the situation that we're in, when it was man-made, it was made by the government itself. These nursing homes, the community nursing homes and the family nursing homes, small nursing homes need to be supported, as do their staff. Health care workers, nurses and other staff are too often faced with impossible situations that are not of their making. They do not make the decisions that lead to the lack of dignity of the most basic things required for human dignity. Pads, blankets being taken to the bathroom, never mind stimulation and joyful activities. Safe staffing levels should never be optional. Pay and conditions for many of these workers are abysmal for the level of responsibilities they have. Zero hour contracts, minimum wage are not conducive to the intensive care that needs to be provided for the entire most vulnerable. I want to say that, and I support the calls for the COVID enquiry, because it was the very same health care workers that came face to face with what they experienced in nursing homes, and we're still paying the minimum wage or a little above. That is disgraceful.
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