Fire safety concerns have been identified at a North Clare nursing home.
A HIQA inspection at St Dominc Savio Nursing Home in Liscannor found that there was not a satisfactory fire drill plan in place there, while issues with fire seals on doors were also identified.
The unannounced inspection took place over two days in May of this year, with a specific focus on dementia care.
While the inspector was not specifically looking at health and safety and risk management, some issues were noted during the course of the visit.
The provider had recently upgraded the fire alarm system and regular fire drills
were carried out but records maintained did not provide assurance that staff could evacuate residents safely and in a timely manner in the event of fire.
The records did not include details of the time, location and outcome of the drills.
The inspector also had concerns that some of the smoke seals on the compartment fire doors located on the corridors in the older section of the building would not be effective in the event of fire as they had been painted over.
Since the inspection, fire drills have been carried out at St Dominic Savio Nursing Home, while new fire seals were installed.
The operators of the facility also completed a Train the Trainer course for Fire Training, so that similar issues going forward could be addressed.
Details of the full report are available here
https://www.hiqa.ie/system/files?file=inspectionreports/450-st-dominic-savio-nursing-home-29-may-2018.pdf
