There were 17 notifications of abuse allegations submitted to the Health Information and Quality Authority over a nine-month period relating to residents at a disability centre in Wicklow.
They included allegations of intimidation, such as residents being chased around the house and threatened – physical, including residents being hit with closed fists and table legs and spat at - and verbal abuse.
An inspection report published by HIQA states that some of the incidents resulted in physical injuries such as bruising.
A recent notification related to one resident "who appeared upset and frustrated after an incident" and told staff that they wanted to end their life.
During another incident in October last year, a resident contacted An Garda Síochána for help.
The inspector reviewed a sample (three) of the notified incidents to verify that they were reported to the national safeguarding office and found that they had been.
The unannounced inspection was carried out as part of the ongoing regulatory monitoring of the centre by HIQA.
The previous inspection of the centre in July last year found that residents were experiencing a poor-quality service with recurring safeguarding issues and insufficient oversight of restrictions on residents' rights.
This inspection found improvements under some of the regulations inspected; for example, there was a full staff team in place to support residents.
However, the inspection found that safeguarding arrangements were not effective, and this was seen through recurring incidents and ongoing concerns expressed by staff, the management team, and residents.
Only one staff member had completed training in communication, and overall, the inspector found that it was not demonstrated that residents' communication needs were fully supported.
The report is one of 27 inspection reports on designated centres for people with disabilities that have been published.
Poor governance impacted residents at three centres operated by the HSE.
An urgent action was issued to the provider to address immediate risks facing residents and improve the suitability of the premises for residents' needs.
In the remaining two HSE centres, improvements were required in minimising safeguarding incidents and staff training.
