Inspectors found the mental health unit at University Hospital Kerry to be unclean and non-compliant with medicine regulation.
A new report issued by the Mental Health Commission noted the Sliabh Mis Mental Health Admission Unit at UHK had a compliance rate of 88%.
Despite the non-compliance in some areas, inspectors found there was a commitment to high-quality care delivery by the multi-disciplinary team at the unit.
The unannounced inspection took place at the unit from 8th to 11th July last year.
The unit was found to be compliant in 29 areas, and non-compliant in four, with an overall compliance rate of 88%, putting it in the top five for centres inspected in 2025.
This is a slightly worse performance than 2024, but still represents a significantly better score than 2023, when the Sliabh Mis Unit was non-compliant in 11 areas.
At the time of last July’s inspection, not all staff had completed the mandatory training in required areas, but a mandatory training schedule for the coming months was planned to address this.
Inspectors found the centre was not kept in a good state of repair externally and internally, and not all windows worked properly.
The unit was not clean throughout, and cigarette ends had built up on garden pavements, while seals in fire doors were damaged or missing, which compromised fire safety.
The unit was also non-compliant with regard to medicine practices; its policy did not include the prescribing of high-dose anti-psychotic treatment.
On two occasions, medicines administered to residents were not recorded, and two medicine records for residents did not include whether or not the residents had any allergies or sensitivities to any medications.
There was no regular review by a pharmacist for any residents that were prescribed high-dose anti-psychotic treatment.
Inspectors found the non-compliance with premises and medicines both created a high risk.
The register of residents was not up-to-date and was missing some details, while the unit did not comply with the code of practice on physical restraint, which created a moderate risk.
Corrective and preventative actions were to be taken in response to all areas highlighted by the inspectors.
Despite these areas of non-compliance, inspectors said many aspects of service provision exceeded the minimum standards set out in mental health legislation, and there was a commitment to high-quality care delivery by the multi- disciplinary team.
Residents who engaged with inspectors during the inspection were complimentary of staff, of the food, and activities available to them.
