Over 1,100 injuries and accidents to kids in care
More than 1,100 injuries or accidents involving children in residential care took place last year, according to new figures.
The data, released by Tusla, the child and family agency under the Freedom of Information Act, shows that injuries were more common than accidents, with hundreds of cases requiring first aid or more pronounced medical intervention.
The figures cover private residential care settings and Tusla or voluntary residential care, including special care settings.
There was a total of 1,140 incidents involving children in residential care last year, of which 574 required first aid or greater levels of medical treatment.
The single largest category was incidents in which young people were injured and required medical treatment in Tusla/voluntary care in the Dublin North East region, where there were 126 incidents last year.
All bar 45 incidents recorded last year involved those aged under 18.
The figures show a slight fall in the number of overall incidents involving children in residential care last year compared with the figure for 2017, while the number of cases in which medical treatment was required fell by 109 compared to 2017.
The information is contained in Tusla’s Significant Event Notification database, but the agency said it did not collect information for statistical purposes as to the number of carers or peers involved in injuries being sustained by children in care.
Empowering People In Care, an organisation which supports those in the care system, said the rate of injuries sustained by young people had not come to its attention as an issue or concern, but a spokesperson said it would like to know if gardaí were contacted in relation to any incidents.
Last year saw a steady decline in the number of children in care, with the most recent figure for last December putting the figure at 6,026. However, the number of children in private placements, including residential care, increased over the same period.
