Residents in a private nursing home continued to be served regular sausages, despite a warning by inspectors that they were at risk of choking on them, a new report has revealed.

The unannounced inspection of Ti Aire nursing home, in Tallaght, Belmullet, Mayo in early October found a previous instruction to only serve skinless sausages had not been followed.

The staffing skill mix did not adequately meet the assessed needs of residents as there was only one nurse on duty from 6pm to 8am, even though most of them were at maximum levels of dependency, according to the Health Information and Quality Authority (Hiqa).

They inspectors also found fault with some of the restraint of residents even though the nursing home provider had worked towards improvements. Bedrails and lap belts were still in use.

Some residents used chairs that were in a reclined position with a lap belt in use and were too restrictive. Closed circuit television was also in place in the dining room.

In response, the owners agreed to review the issues highlighted by the inspectors.

A separate inspection of the Good Counsel Nursing Home in Kilmallock Rd in Limerick led to concerns about residents smoking in their bedrooms.

The inspectors found burn marks on one set of bed sheets.

It also found major non-compliance in relation to fire safety. Records showed that four staff had neither participated in a fire drill or received fire safety training.

A look at the staff roster found that untrained staff had been put on night duty.

The fire safety training programme did not include the need to ensure that staff knew what to do should the clothes of a resident catch fire.

They found that one of the residents was required to get fluids of moderate consistency.However, they were being given fluids of normal consistency.

This placed the resident at risk of choking or infection.

The owners agreed to comply with an action plan to address the issues. They agreed to put adequate arrangements in place within a certain timescale to comply with fires safety regulations.

Irish Independent