Dianne Willmore, who passed from mesothelioma in 2009, won a landmark £240,000 case, holding Knowsley Borough Council liable for her asbestos exposure during school. Her case prompted legal and financial ramifications for local authorities nationwide, leading to increased awareness and changes in asbestos-related negligence proceedings.
Shane Flynn, 35, owner of a Mullingar clinic, was convicted of sexual assault after inappropriately touching a client seeking back pain relief. The investigation also revealed 18 hours of footage showing Flynn secretly filming 35 women during massages, raising further concerns about his conduct and abuse of trust within his practice.
Naveed Rana, a Dublin taxi driver, was sentenced to five and a half years for the assault of an 18-year-old woman after a night out. The court heard how Rana took advantage of the victim’s trust, driving erratically and assaulting her before being apprehended due to her quick actions in reporting the incident to Gardaí.
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Institutional abuse occurs when people are mistreated by individuals or a support system that is supposed to look after them. To confidently discuss your case or request a callback from our experienced solicitor, complete the online form below.
It’s a fact that Ireland’s population, both North and South, is getting older. A natural consequence of this is that more and more people are entering nursing homes and residential care homes. This concept is relatively new to the Irish family, but the realities of today are making it more of the norm than the exception.
However, not all nursing homes and residential care homes are created equal, and while some are completely responsive to the needs of the patient, others are not. This is not always apparent when looking at a nursing home from the outside (or inside), and you need to consider interviewing residents or their families about the kind of care their loved ones received. An aging population means that the number of people who will experience abuse when they grow older is set to increase unless measures to tackle elder abuse are introduced. Figures released last year revealed that Gardai were given over 700 complaints about the ill-treatment of the elderly and mentally disabled in nursing homes.
The definition of abuse in Safeguarding Vulnerable Adults: Regional Adult Protection Policy and Procedural Guidelines (2006) in NI is: “the physical, psychological, emotional, financial or sexual maltreatment or neglect of a vulnerable adult by another person.
The abuse may be a single act or repeated over some time. It may take one form or multiple forms. The lack of appropriate action can also be a form of abuse. Abuse can occur in a relationship where there is an expectation of trust. It can be perpetrated by a person/persons in breach of that trust who influence the life of a dependant, whether they be formal or informal carers, staff or family members or others. It can also occur outside such a relationship.”
In ROI, a definition of elder abuse outlined by the Working Group on Elder Abuse in 2002 is similar to the NI definition. It is based on Action on Elder Abuse’s (1995) definition, which was also adopted by the World Health Organization (2002), where elder abuse is described as: “a single or repeated act or lack of appropriate action occurring within any relationship where there is an expectation of trust which causes harm or distress to an older person or violates their human and civil rights” (Protecting our Future, 2002).
The following is a list of the various types of elder abuse which can occur in care homes:
• physical abuse
• sexual abuse
• psychological abuse
• financial or material abuse
• neglect and acts of omission
• discriminatory abuse
If you, a friend, or a family member has experienced any of the above, please contact our offices today on 01-5313800 to speak with one of our solicitors, who can explain the options and remedies available. A medical negligence compensation claim solicitor will handle your claim for damages against healthcare professionals for personal injury and loss.
Some nursing homes and residential care homes have regular schedules for toileting their residents and will toilet them on demand with little time between the request to void and the response from the nursing home aide. Others take too long to take the patient to the toilet, resulting in accidents. Too many accidents result in the resident ending up in nappies that are left on the resident in a soiled condition, leading to rashes and urine damage to the skin.
While most nursing homes and residential care homes can bring themselves to leave water by the bedside, many aides forget that residents have a decreased drive for thirst when compared to young people, and they also have a reduced ability to get to the water and drink it. For elderly people, this type of dehydration can lead to low blood pressure, falls and urinary tract infections.
Residents can be socially neglected by leaving them in bed or a wheelchair in their room where they don’t have access to the environmental milieu or people to talk to. The lack of simple social interaction can lead to episodes of depression that can lead to further isolation and even death.
Medications are usually given in large numbers to many different residents, leaving a lot of room for error. A cupful of medications can be given to the wrong resident, leading to allergies and adverse side effects. Giving too much of a medication can lead to side effects that can be deadly and failing to give a medication or series of medications to a resident can result in under-treatment of a medical condition and a series of after-effects.
The inquiry into Historical Institutional Abuse in Northern Ireland (known as the HIA inquiry) was set up in 2013 to investigate child abuse in residential institutions in Northern Ireland over 73 years, up to 1995. A total of 13 Northern Ireland institutions are being investigated. Whether you were abused as a child or as an adult, and whether the abuse was sexual, physical or both, you can speak to us at CLP in confidence about your entitlement to claim compensation from the individual or the organisation or person that failed to protect you from the abuse.
At Coleman Legal LLP, we understand the difficulties a person may have in discussing abuse, and we appreciate the fear and anxiety they may have in making a claim.
We assure you that we deal with every victim with the utmost sensitivity and confidentiality and pursue each case urgently and professionally.
Solicitors
84 Talbot Street, Dublin 1
D01 YX60
Free Phone: 1800-844-104
Fax: (01) 5312727
Email: [email protected]
Web: www.colemanlegalpartners.ie
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