Still No Lesson Learned from Peter McKenna's Death?

national | health / disability issues | news report Thursday July 13, 2006 12:21 by Kathy Sinnott - Chair, Hope Project

I would like to publicly raise my concerns regarding the vulnerability of those citizens who are currently Wards of Court and who cannot speak up for themselves.

I do this in light of the dreadful circumstances of the death of Peter McKenna, a man with Down Syndrome who was sent to Leas Cross nursing home at the direction of the judge in the Ward of Court. The Hynes report which investigated the circumstances of this man’s death found that St. Michael’s House withheld vital information from the Court which would have prevented Mr. McKenna being sent to this establishment. Leas Cross nursing home has since been closed down. As a parent of a similarly vulnerable citizen, I still await what action the office of the Ward of Court is taking to prevent a repeat of what happened to Mr. McKenna. There have been numerous other parents who have been in contact with me expressing similar concerns.

I am unaware of any investigation into the actions of St. Michael’s House in this tragic case or of steps taken to prevent a repeat of the events which lead to Mr. McKenna’s death. In the absence of any such action being taken, those on the Ward of Court list remain particularly vulnerable.The Wards of Court office are not in a position to do extensive investigation and rely heavily on the truth of what they are told. If a voluntary agency such as St. Michael’s House is allowed to treat the Ward of Court process with such disdain, there is no reason to believe any other voluntary agency would not follow suit. I am urging the office of the Ward of Court to close the loophole whereby a voluntary agency is allowed to misrepresent or manipulate the truth or even give misleading information to a Ward of Court hearing and is subsequently not held to account for their actions.