Galway Bay fm newsroom - The adult acute mental health unit at UHG has been found to be non-compliant with a regulation which states the registered proprietor shall ensure that an approved centre will co-operate fully with mental health tribunals.
The Mental Health Commission has today published its report after an inspection was carried out of the Mental Health Tribunal room at the facility in July, under Regulation 30.
The Adult Acute Mental Health Unit at UHG is a two-storey facility which is in operation since last year.
It was officially opened by Minister for Mental Health and Older People Jim Daly this week.
The Mental Health Commission conducted a focused inspection on foot of receiving, in relation to its work, a complaint, in July 2019, from a Chairperson of a Mental Health Tribunal.
The concerns related to the provision of appropriate private facilities and adequate resources to support the Mental Health Tribunal process.
The inspection found the location of MHTs had been moved from what was the original room at the time of registration of the approved centre to another room along the same corridor.
This room was partitioned to provide a MHT room and a training/multi-purpose room.
Inspectors found the room was small, not soundproofed and proceedings could be heard in the training room next door.
There were no windows and the room was stuffy and hot at the time of the inspection.
At the previous inspection the original mental health tribunal room had been inspected.
This room was bright and spacious, with natural light coming through a number of windows along one wall.
Staff stated that this room was now used for a number of purposes such as training and meetings and that all mental health tribunals were now held in the smaller room.
The Commission issued an immediate action notice to address these concerns and has been engaging with the approved centre to ensure the service is meeting the needs of patients attending a Mental Health Tribunal.
