Patients enduring ‘high risk’ conditions at Central Mental Hospital, inspectors say

Patients at the Central Mental Hospital are enduring “high risk” conditions months after it was ordered close by the State’s mental health watchdog.

The latest inspection of the Victorian-era hospital in Dundrum, Dublin by regulators found it was “not fit for purpose” and had inadequate showering facilities and toilets, leading to privacy concerns. Some bedrooms were cramped and not all had locks on the inside of doors, the Mental Health Commission said.

Although registered as a 106-bed facility, only 93 beds were in use at the time of the partial inspection in February. The 13 unfilled beds were linked partly to measures to combat the spread of Covid-19, which also hampered a full inspection of the hospital.

In all, the facility was found not to have complied with rules about privacy, patient seclusion and the suitability of the hospital buildings. All three findings of non-compliance were deemed to be “high risk” by the commission. The hospital also was found to be not compliant with regulations on access to suitable clothing for patients.

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The commission had demanded the Central Mental Hospital be shut by March this year, with patients to be transferred to a new 170-bed facility at Portrane, north Dublin.

The regulator was told in February that the Portrane hospital was “completed” and that patients would be transferred by April. The Health Service Executive has since asked to extend the deadline for closure and that request has been granted, a commission spokeswoman said.

Inspector of Mental Health Services Dr Susan Finnerty said the commission “understands” that the move to Portrane “will take place in the near future”.

“Many of the aspects criticised in the Central Mental Hospital report are down to the unsuitable premises that this centre continues to operate in,” she added. “The sooner the Portrane centre is registered and starts to admit patients, the better for all concerned.”

Overall, Dundrum scored an 89 per cent regulation compliance rating for last year, up from 74 per cent in 2020.

But the hospital, which dates back to 1852, was found to not be kept “in a good state of repair”.

Privacy was raised as a concern and in one unit patients had no access to “private showering facilities as the two showers provided were located in one open-plan bathroom”.

“Both showers had shower curtains, but the residents had to share a communal area for dressing and undressing,” the report states.

In response to a patient questionnaire, the commission said “several residents expressed concerns regarding shared shower facilities which risked compromising privacy”.

Another “high risk” area was seclusion facilities, which were not adequately furnished, maintained and cleaned “to ensure respect for resident dignity and privacy.”

Separately, the commission found a drop in standards at the St John of God psychiatric hospital in Stillorgan, Dublin. Its overall compliance rating was 89 per cent, down from 94 per cent in 2020. A child was admitted to the hospital on three separate occasions since the previous inspection, despite there being no “age-appropriate facilities”, the report found.

The Lois Bridges centre for eating disorders in Sutton, Dublin, also recorded a drop in standards, with a compliance rating of 86 per cent, which was “14 per cent lower than its 2020 rating”. Inspectors found a “high non-compliance with risk management” and “a high-risk non-compliance with the code of practice on admission, transfer, and discharge”.

The Health Service Executive said the Central Mental Hospital is not fit for purpose and that the Portrane hospital would open in the “coming months”. The move was delayed due to “outstanding operational issues”, a spokeswoman said.