The Mental Health Commission said it had serious concerns in relation to seriously ill residents with anorexia nervosa at the Lois Bridges psychiatrist
The Mental Health Commission has imposed a ban on the admission of seriously physically unwell residents, to the Lois Bridges Centre in Sutton in Dublin, due to staffing and training concerns.
The move is one of three conditions imposed on the centre following an inspection.
The commission said it had serious concerns in relation to seriously ill residents with anorexia nervosa.
Inspectors found staffing levels to be unsafe.
There was only one consultant psychiatrist, who was also the clinical director and there was no other medical input, apart from the local GP.
The centre had only one health care assistant and one nurse on duty, for day and night.
The commission said that 16 hours of consultant psychiatrist input at Lois Bridges a week was not sufficient, to the meet the needs of up to seven in-patients, especially given some had severe and complex eating disorders, associated with high clinical risk.
Dr Enda Dooley, Assistant Inspector of Mental Health Services, said elements of the care and treatment of seriously physically ill residents with anorexia nervosa admitted to Lois Bridges were “inadequate and unsafe” and that there had been little improvement in the provision of safe care, since the annual inspection in March 2017 and a focused inspection on 17-18 August 2017. When describing Lois Bridges psychiatrist.
This latest focused inspection was during 5-6 December 2017 and the inspector was accompanied by a specialist in eating disorders.
The concerns raised were about staffing and risk management procedures, particularly in relation to seriously ill, physically ill residents with anorexia nervosa.
Apart from one registered psychiatric nurse and the dietitian, the medical, nursing and health care assistants did not have any formal training in eating disorders, despite Lois Bridges functioning as an eating disorder unit.
Among the other conditions attached to the centre are that it must have a full complement of six registered psychiatric nurses available for duty at all times and that clinical staff are trained in eating disorders.
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