In today's Irish Independent HIQA have released a report on a particular care home where the residents were drinking too much whilst socialising locally, and as such their care was being put at risk.
They said the consumption of alcohol by some elderly residents of the Care Home in Tipperary town was excessive and problematic, leading to "challenging behaviours", and that "there was no policy, risk assessments or adequate documentation in place in relation to alcohol consumption".
This can create issues for managers from both an Employment law and Health & Safety perspective.
From an Employment Law point of view it is important to have policies and procedures in place in order to ensure correct procedures are followed at all times, and also to ensure there are clear instructions for employees as to what will be tolerated and what will not.
In a recent case we saw a Tribunal award an employee over €12,000 and highlight the importance of contracts and handbooks in an employment relationship. The Tribunal noted that it was “of mutual benefit” to issue these terms to an employee as it gives a reference point in the employment relationship, and the absence of such a document is “a recipe for misunderstandings and indeed disputes“.
Alcohol consumption can be a particularly thorny issue however when the care of residents is involved there should be clear guidelines as to what would constitute excessive consumption in order to ensure they are adequately protected.
From a Health and Safety perspective it is equally important to have clear policies in place, and many of these can compliment the Employment Law polices also.
Care homes have very strict regulations in relation to all aspects of care from staffing numbers to one on one interactions, and recent cases have shown significant fines for incidents such as incorrect hoists used when lifting residents, or poor fire evacuation procedures. So when there is a situation where a vulnerable person could cause harm to themselves due to excessive consumption of alcohol then there should be strict regulations for employees to consider when dealing with such employees.
A small slip or a knock could have very serious effects to a vulnerable person and whilst the need for such heavy regulation is regrettable should there be an accident or injury the policies and procedures an employer has in place could prove to be very important indeed.
