Concerns over fire safety at Cork nursing home months before closure announced

Inspectors from the Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA) expressed concern about fire safety in a Sunday’s Well nursing home and the ability of staff to safely evacuate residents, months before the home’s closure was announced.

Last month The Echo revealed that the 37-bed Blair’s Hill private nursing home in Sunday’s Well will close on March 31, with management saying the decision had been made “with bitter disappointment”.

A report by HIQA last October noted that evacuation aids on site were to be fitted beneath mattresses so that residents could be evacuated on their mattresses.

However, the HIQA inspector was told by staff and management that the mattresses would not fit through bedroom doors, as they were too narrow.

As a result, the evacuation aid would be used without the mattresses which, Hiqa said, posed a risk of injury to residents.

Staff and management confirmed that their fire safety training was to horizontally evacuate residents to an adjoining compartment, ideally to the centre’s large staircase, and await assistance from the fire service.

“This meant that residents may be subjected to the effects of fire and smoke for an extended period,” 

HIQA said.

The inspector’s report also stated that an alternative external escape route from the rear exits was across a large area of gravel, which would not be suitable for residents who may use mobility equipment, such as a wheelchair. Additionally, the ground floor had bedrooms where residents with limited mobility were living, and each exit had one or more steps.

The external buildings on site, some of which were used for storage, did not have fire detection, meaning a fire may go unnoticed allowing it to grow and spread to the main building.

SEALS MISSING

Furthermore, the wall between the laundry and dining room appeared to not provide adequate fire containment, and inspectors observed fire doors where seals were missing, automatic closers not fitted, or there were large gaps around the door.

There were also concerns raised about the ventilation system in the smoking room, stairs with a handrail on one side only, a non-functional call bell in the smoking room and a lack of bells in the activities room. There was also inadequate information in both fire safety service and drill records.

A food lift in the basement kitchen was not fire-rated, neither was an electrical panel on a staircase, where there was no fire detector.

The provider said after the inspection that it had undertaken more training sessions and drill records had been reviewed, with call bells and a fire detector near the kitchen added.

However, HIQA said in response: “The compliance plan response from the registered provider does not adequately assure the chief inspector that the action will result in compliance with the regulations.”