The report of the Covid-19 Nursing Homes Expert Panel (Examination of Measures to 2021) stated: “The very infectious nature of Covid-19 makes it difficult to prevent and control in residential care settings”. It also said “the transmission of the virus into and within nursing homes is multifactorial”. The Commission said “the context of social care in Ireland is highly relevant to adult safeguarding” and drew attention to the fact that provision of social care in Ireland is largely on a policy or administrative basis, in contrast with the statutory social care frameworks in jurisdictions such as England and Wales. The Law Reform Commission has put the issue of social care legislation on the table. Second, the government actively encouraged and facilitated the recruitment of nurses from private nursing homes into the public acute hospital system, leaving many private nursing homes reliant on agency staff who moved between multiple facilities.

Source: The Irish Times April 02, 2026 17:01 UTC