Nursing homes rebuked for dust on food, fire safety and a lack of access to outdoor spaces

Dust on food items, a lack of access to outdoor areas, and residents being treated in communal areas were among the issues identified in recent inspections of nursing homes by the health watchdog.

The Health Information and Quality Authority (Hiqa) carried out inspections of 50 nursing homes across the country.

Bushfield Care Centre in Galway was non-compliant in all areas, including quality and safety, food nutrition and infection control.

The 23 residents spoke positively about staff, but told inspectors that ongoing construction work at Bushfield was having a negative effect on their daily lives.

They complained of noise, disruption due to the construction workers and being forced to move bedrooms to facilitate the work.

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They said they had been given the opportunity to raise concerns with management at meetings, but that little had changed.

Inspectors observed accumulations of construction dust and debris on floors and surfaces throughout the centre. In catering areas, construction dust was observed on stored food items, including fresh fruit and vegetables.

A number of fire safety risks were observed during the walk-through of the centre. Doors were held open with wheelchairs and makeshift wedges, including cross-corridor fire doors outside the kitchen area.

“Fire detection has been disconnected at the temporary entrance to the centre and attic hatches were observed to be left open,” the report noted.

“This could compromise fire containment measures in the event of a fire emergency. Combustible materials, including cardboard and empty bottles, were found stored in an electrical switch room. This was a repeated observation from a previous inspection.

“Effective governance, oversight and risk management systems were not in place to identify, assess and mitigate the risks associated with the construction works, including risks relating to fire safety, and infection prevention and control,” the report concluded.

At a meeting with management, Genesis Healthcare Oranmore Ltd, Hiqa informed said continued noncompliance would result in Bushfield losing its licence.

At New Houghton Hospital in New Ross, Co Wexford, residents were not provided with enough access to outdoor areas, inspectors found.

There are 41 residents at the centre, which is run by the Health Service Executive.

It was found to be non-compliant in a number of areas, including residents’ rights.

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Regarding outdoor space, the inspector found that access to the enclosed sensory garden outside the Abbey Unit sitting/diningroom remained restricted with a keypad.

This is contrary to the provider’s compliance plan commitments following the previous inspection in April 2025.

At the time, management informed the inspector of plans to liaise with each resident’s representative before disabling the keypad code during daytime hours. However, these engagements had not yet occurred.

While the inspector observed staff members taking six male residents out to the garden, residents “could not freely access the garden to enjoy fresh air, connect with nature, and spend meaningful time outdoors if they so wished”.

A number of residents on both the ground and first floors informed the inspector that they would like further opportunities to go outdoors, and similar feedback was noted in the residents’ questionnaires.