A senior clinical psychologist has called for the closure of all institutions in the State caring for the mentally handicapped.
Dr Mark Harrold, who works with the handicapped in Dublin, said institutional care was inappropriate for handicapped persons and should be phased out before the Special Olympics take place here next year. "You can't warehouse mentally handicapped people," he said.
His comments followed the highlighting of the plight in yesterday's Irish Examiner of Corkman Mr Paul O'Sullivan (34) who was diagnosed with autistic tendencies at age six and has been in State care since he was seven. His family claim he has regressed since going into care, that he received little or no therapy, had a dangerously low body weight, and tore at his flesh and clothes out of boredom. Paul is in Grove House, an intellectual disability unit run by the Southern Health Board. The home has 30 residents.
Dr Harrold said Paul had been treated "worse than an animal" and his situation mirrored that of up to 1,000 others in the State.
He said there were many voluntary agencies providing excellent care for the mentally handicapped but health board facilities were often "dumping grounds" for those with more challenging behaviour.
He called on other professionals and the church to speak out against such "cruelty to defenceless people".
"This is a problem that can be solved and I would call on the Minister for Health to personally intervene," he added. Paul should be accommodated in a house with no more than four others and attend a therapeutic day centre every day where he would participate in activities appropriate to his level of disability.
"We go on so much in this country about the right to life before birth but once they are born, in the case of mentally handicapped people, that right evaporates," he said.
Institutions caring for the mentally handicapped are not inspected by any agency. The general secretary of the National Association of the Mentally Handicapped of Ireland, Ms Deirdre Carroll, called for an inspectorate to be put in place without delay.
"We certainly are outraged by Paul O'Sullivan's situation and would be aware of similar cases," she said.
The Southern Health Board said it provided a range of therapies at Grove House, which is now undergoing refurbishment. It said it would issue a further statement later in response to the article.