Health authorities are considering going to court to seek the closure of Leas Cross nursing home following growing concern over standards of care for the home's 90 residents.
The Health Service Executive (HSE) is seeking alternative nursing home places for more than 20 public patients because of fears over their safety.
It is also advising private patients and their relatives to seek alternative arrangements.
In a statement yesterday the HSE said the nursing home "will not be or is not" in compliance with basic care regulations and that the health authority would "take whatever steps are deemed appropriate".
Following a three-week assessment, experts brought in by the HSE were alarmed over the level of nursing care for dependant residents, inadequate disease control measures and signs of sores on a significant number of patients.
Health authority sources say that while the HSE wants to deregister or close the nursing home, it is mindful of the lengthy and bureaucratic process involved.
Speaking to The Irish Times yesterday evening, the owner of Leas Cross, John Aherne, said the HSE's decision to remove residents from was a "knee-jerk" reaction. "I think it wouldn't be in the best interests of the families of these 24 people to be told on the one o'clock news that they are being moved," he said.
While the home had "minor problems", he was happy that the ratio of staff to patients was "fine... In seven years I have never drawn a wage from Leas Cross. I reinvest the profits".
Separately, The Irish Times has learned that an unpublished report commissioned by Dublin health authorities is highly critical of the standard of care provided to 60-year-old Peter McKenna who died two weeks after being admitted to Leas Cross.
The report by Martin Hynes, former chief executive of the Irish Blood Transfusion Board, questions whether the nursing home had the expertise to care for Mr McKenna and criticised the level of care available to him. Mr McKenna, who had Down's syndrome and Alzheimer's, died of blood poisoning.
The report also raises serious questions over whether it was appropriate for St Michael's House, a disability service provider, to seek to transfer Mr McKenna to a facility such as Leas Cross.
The report is implicitly critical of the way health authorities inspected Leas Cross and recommends reform of the inspection process. It indicates that more robust inspections were taking place in other parts of the country.
A draft of the report is understood to have been with health authorities for several months, and a final report was submitted since early May. St Michael's House and Leas Cross have not responded to media queries relating to the report.
Meanwhile, the HSE's director of nursing, Jack Buckley, said the decision to move patients had been taken after a three-week assessment by six experienced staff and a consultant geriatrician.
"It was a decision based on sound clinical judgment. It's not one that was taken lightly. It's a major disruption to residents, change can be traumatic for older residents," Mr Buckley said.
He added that the process of finding suitable alternative nursing homes would not be rushed.
Health authority sources, who say an attempt to deregister Leas Cross is being considered, point to unsuccessful attempts to close Rostrevor nursing home in the High Court in August following a number of alleged breaches of care.
The High Court ruled that it did not have the authority to shut down a registered nursing home, which was a matter for the District Court. This process may take several months to complete. The case is due to be heard in September.
