Muckamore Abbey Hospital: Public inquiry terms of reference announced

The terms of reference for the public inquiry into allegations of abuse at Muckamore Abbey Hospital have been announced by the health minister.

The appointment of two expert personnel to the inquiry has also been confirmed.

The setting up date for the inquiry will be 11 October 2021.

It was announced in June 2021 that the inquiry will be chaired by Tom Kark QC - who played a key role in the 2010 inquiry into avoidable deaths at Stafford Hospital in England.

The Muckamore Abbey Hospital is run by the Belfast Health Trust and provides facilities for adults with special needs.

A major police investigation began in 2017 after allegations of ill-treatment began to emerge.

Thousands of hours of CCTV footage has been reviewed as part of a PSNI investigation, according to police.

The process to develop the Muckamore Abbey Hospital Inquiry Terms of Reference has now been completed, and it included stakeholder engagement with patients and families affected, Health Minister Robin Swann said in a written statement to the Northern Ireland Assembly.

The inquiry is to be wholly independent and not accountable to the Department of Health, the Stormont Executive, the assembly or any public body.

The core objectives are defined as "to examine the issue of abuse of patients at Muckamore Abbey Hospital (MAH), to determine why the abuse happened and the range of circumstances that allowed it to happen and ensure that such abuse does not occur again at MAH or any other institution providing similar services in Northern Ireland".

Mr Swann said that Prof Glynis Murphy and Dr Peter Carter have been appointed as inquiry panel members.

Prof Murphy is a chartered clinical and forensic psychologist as well as a Health and Care Professions Council member and fellow of the British Psychological Society.

She was president of the International Association of the Scientific Study of Intellectual Disabilities (IASSID) between 2008 and 2012.

Dr Peter Carter trained for six years as a psychiatric nurse at Hill End Hospital in St Albans, then worked at the then regional adolescent unit at Hill End Hospital, undertaking further training in family therapy and crisis intervention.

"Muckamore Abbey Hospital patients and families remain in my thoughts as the inquiry embarks on its statutory responsibilities and I would like to again acknowledge the severe hurt, distress and anxiety that have been caused," the health minister added.

"I am confident the establishment of the independent Muckamore Abbey Hospital Inquiry will enable a full and transparent investigation of the circumstances of the abuse, and ensure lessons are learned in order to improve our healthcare systems and restore public confidence in our healthcare services."