Portlaoise nursing home: 40 abuse claims in 18 months

THE Residence nursing home in Portlaoise notified HIQA of 40 allegations of abuse of a resident within 18 months.

The mandatory notifications were made between December 2023 and June 2025, in relation to ‘suspected or confirmed’ abuse claims.

There were also four notifications regarding ‘unexplained absence of a resident’ from the home during the same time period, as well as 17 of serious incident or injury involving a resident.

The details are contained in HIQA’s interim report on two Emeis-owned nursing homes in Portlaoise and Dublin, which featured in the disturbing  RTÉ Prime Time Investigates programme.

The report was published by HIQA this evening, having been presented to minister of state for older people Kieran O’Donnell last Friday 13 June.

According to the report, Emeis Ireland management told HIQA that they referred incidents to gardaí ‘where appropriate’.

The 40-page interim report details monitoring notifications received from The Residence, under a mandatory requirement to notify the regulator of specific events, including abuse allegations, unexpected deaths and any serious injury to a resident.

Between 14 December 2023 and 6 June 2025, the home notified HIQA of 40 allegations, suspected or confirmed, of abuse to a resident.

There were 17 notifications of ‘serious incident/injury to a resident that requires hospital admission/resulted in death’.

There were 23 unexpected deaths during the same time frame and four cases of ‘unexplained absence of a resident from the designated centre’.

Regarding abuse allegations, the report states: ‘It is important to note that (these) notifications are required where there is a suspicion or allegation of abuse, which may or may not be substantiated, and can include a wide range of incidents such as residents’ altercations with other residents, the tone that someone is spoken to, through to more significant suspicions or allegations.’ 

The report states that all notifications received were reviewed and risk-rated and, where appropriate, inspectors engaged directly with the provider to follow up on any issues of concern.

HIQA also received 11 pieces of 'unsolicited information' in relation to The Residence during the same time period. Three were protected disclosures from an employee or a health and social care professional, while five were from a relative.

The Portlaoise nursing home was inspected six times since it was registered on 14 December 2023, with the most recent unannounced inspection in June 2025.

Following non-compliant findings of inspections in October 2024 and February 2025 and decreasing levels of compliance, the registered provider was required to attend a warning meeting. During this meeting, the provider was told that a Notice of Proposed Decision to attach a condition to cease admissions would be issued.

While Emeis made representations against the Notice of Proposed Decision, the HIQA Chief Inspector proceeded to issue a notice, with effect from 22 April 2025.

Regarding the shocking RTÉ programme, the interim report states: ‘Until the programme aired on 4 June 2025, HIQA was not aware of the full detail of what was found in the footage or what would be broadcast. Once notified that the programme was to be broadcast, the Deputy Chief Inspector with responsibility for nursing homes engaged immediately with the registered provider of both nursing homes, seeking assurances that residents were safe. 

‘A series of unannounced inspections commenced, with inspectors undertaking unannounced inspections of both nursing homes in the evening and in the early hours of the morning, as well as during the day, to ascertain the service provided at all times of day and night.

‘Inspections of The Residence Portlaoise were carried out on 5, 8 and 12 June 2025, with the timing of the inspector’s arrival in the centre on each of the three days informed by the contents of the programme and targeted towards times of reduced staffing (5pm on Thursday 5 June, 8pm on Sunday 8 June and at 8am on Thursday 12 June) to ensure that there were sufficient numbers of staff to care for residents and to supervise the delivery of care.

'As expected, in the aftermath of the programme, inspectors found that the provider had taken a range of measures to address the immediate risk to residents. Over the three days of inspection, inspectors found that issues such as supplies and linen had been addressed. While actions had been taken to improve staffing, further improvements to staffing and staff supervision were required.

'Reports of these inspections will be prepared and published informed by the findings of the inspections and a full review of all information received, including meetings and feedback from residents and relatives and staff. A core part of this inspection programme has included meeting with residents and with their families. 

'Many residents, families and staff have also contacted HIQA’s Concerns Helpdesk to tell us about their experiences of living in those homes and in other nursing homes across Ireland. 

'In addition, we have written to all residents and families in those nursing homes inviting them to tell us about their experiences. This information is crucial in informing our regulatory response. Senior Emeis Ireland officers, who are also directors of each company operating the two nursing homes, were required to attend a formal warning meeting with the Chief Inspector on 9 June 2025, to set out the actions they were taking to ensure the residents in both The Residence Portlaoise and Firstcare Beneavin Manor were safe and were receiving the care that they should. ,

'Both providers were issued with an official warning of cancellation of registration should they fail to implement significant improvements in the care of residents. They were also required to set out how they would be addressing the ineffective systems of oversight, management and supervision and the staff culture issues in each nursing home, which enabled staff members to treat their residents in such an inhumane manner. 

'The registered provider of both The Residence Portlaoise and Firstcare Beneavin Manor gave the following commitments regarding the care of residents in both homes:

1. They are currently complying with the condition preventing admissions to The Residence Portlaoise and will continue to comply. They are aware that they cannot admit residents there until the condition is removed. 

2. They have voluntarily ceased the admission of any new residents to Firstcare Beneavin Manor until they were assured that the issues were addressed. 

3. Management and staffing levels have been increased in both centres with immediate effect. 

4. Senior staff from other nursing homes have been deployed to improve the effectiveness of staff supervision in both centres. 

5. External, independent consultants have been retained to undertake a root cause analysis of what occurred in both centres, to inform further ongoing actions to be taken by the provider. 

6. Staff disciplinary action had been initiated. 

7. Where appropriate, referrals had been made to An Garda Síochána.

'Inspectors will continue with a programme of inspection to verify that the provider has implemented their own actions and to verify the effectiveness of those actions.'

Separately, senior Emeis Ireland officers were requested to attend a further meeting on 11 June, to set out the measures they were taking in all of the other nursing homes owned by Emeis Ireland, which include Kilminchy Lodge in Portlaoise. 

Following the meeting, Emeis Ireland agreed to submit a report on the actions they are taking to protect residents across all 25 nursing homes to the Chief Inspector. As requested by the minister, HIQA is undertaking an overview of the regulatory history of all 25 nursing homes within the Emeis Ireland group.

The interim report comments: ‘Resident care depicted in (the RTÉ) programme was wholly unacceptable and an offence to the human rights and dignity of those residents. HIQA is appalled by the way that residents were treated, and such treatment goes against the core values of HIQA and its staff.

‘Responsibility for the safety and care of residents rests with the individual provider of each nursing home and their staff. The contents of the RTÉ Investigates programme evidenced ineffective management and supervision arrangements in place in both centres, and as a result residents were not receiving care that was safe and which upheld their dignity or human rights.’

HIQA is due to deliver a full report to Minister O'Donnell by the end of this week, providing an overview of regulatory history, including but not limited to regulatory compliance, escalating enforcement actions and any additional conditions.

Minister O’Donnell and Minister Carroll MacNeill, with Department of Health officials, met with HIQA today to discuss the interim report. The content and findings of the interim report is being considered along with a full report which is due from HIQA by the end of this week.