RQIA: Urgent action needed to protect vulnerable children here
Watchdog urges authorities to clarify roles ahead of health service reform
A health and social care regulator has warned of future uncertainty over child protection in Northern Ireland.
The Regulation and Quality Improvement Authority has published a review of governance arrangements and made a number of proposals for improvement.
It is calling for clarity over the responsibility of different agencies to protect vulnerable kids here, ahead of health service reforms.
Dr Lourda Geoghegan is the Director of quality improvement and medical director at the RQIA, she said restructuring within the health service means agencies must be clear about their roles:
"This review essentially assessed how effective the governance arrangements are to support child protection across the health and social care system in Northern Ireland.
"We also reported on progress relating to implementation of the recommendations of our previous review in 2011.
"Our report has made 14 recommendations to support further improvement in the child protection arrangements, some of these recommendations need attention now.
"The recommendations requiring attention now relate to the future arrangements for child protection, given that we are expecting some health and social service restructuring.
"While service restructuring is a very welcome and needed aspect of development of our services, it is important that the arrangements supporting child protection are very clear... so that we're clear at each stage, who is responsible for carrying out particular functions."
The report examined care records, met with senior management at the Health and Social Care board and held focus groups with over 200 staff working within child protection.
The review team found evidence of good practice across Northern Ireland and Doctor Lourda said there has definitely been improvements since the last report:
"We welcomed the significant progress that we have seen.
"We saw evidence of very strong leadership and a very committed workforce, good training, good supervision, good record management and evidence of partnership working.
"So we think that there has been a lot of very good work undertaken since our previous review in 2011."
But it also proposed that urgent action is needed to ensure that agencies are clear of their responsibilities going forward:
"We are expecting significant service restructuring as part of the Bengoa report we do expect that the health and social care board will close.
"We recommend that the functions that are currently undertaken by the health and social care board in relation to child protection will need to be described."
"In terms of restructuring going forward, it's very important that partnership working continues and information is shared appropriately with the various bodies that are charged with ensuring that children are kept safe."