The health watchdog has criticised fire safety precautions at one of Clare's main nursing homes.
A HIQA inspection of St. Joseph's Hospital in Ennis has found that better controls were needed to protect smokers there, and has criticised the response to a previous fire there.
HIQA carried out an unannounced inspection of St. Joseph's Hospital on the Lifford Road in August – its report says it had not been satisfied with the response to an internal investigation which followed on from a fire there in March.
The hospital has capacity for 120 residents, and 104 were there on the day of the inspection.
This report identifies three who smoked, and the inspector says she was not satisfied that 'adequate risk assessments were in place' for them.
The report also makes a number of other criticisms including a failure to provide adequate fire blankets as well deficits in fire warning systems and directional signs. It also notes there was no record of attendance for at least nineteen staff for fire safety training undertaken in 2013.
Issues with the accommodation are also highlighted, including an insufficient number of showers and limited personal storage areas, which limited 'the privacy, independence and quality of life of residents.'
HIQA does note that public feedback to St. Joseph's was consistently positive in relation to the care there, and says it has received a 'satisfactory response' to the risks it had identified.
