The owners of a Bray, Co Wicklow, nursing home were yesterday fined €2,000 by Bray District Court after an elderly resident went missing two years ago and is now presumed dead.
Maura Reynolds (78) left the Tara Care Centre on Putland Road, Bray, on the night of Christmas Day, 2005, sometime after she had returned from a family gathering.
An extensive search was conducted around the Bray seafront and the town for Ms Reynolds, who had Alzheimer's disease and cancer.
The searches were finally called off on January 19th, 2006, and the authorities on the coasts of Wales, Scotland and France were notified of the disappearance in the event of a body being discovered.
Last year, the Health Service Executive (HSE) took legal proceedings against Paul and Anne Costello, owners of the home, under the Health (Nursing Homes) Act 1990 and the Nursing Homes (Care and Welfare) Regulations 1993.
In November, the couple pleaded guilty to failing to ensure that suitable and sufficient care was provided to maintain the welfare and wellbeing of dependent people in the home.
Yesterday, Judge John O'Neill said he had heard the plea of mitigation from the nursing home but he could not ignore the fact "that this lady who suffered from Alzheimer's was not properly monitored".
He also could not ignore the fact that her disappearance was not noticed by staff until the following morning.
He referred to the distress and suffering caused to Ms Reynolds' family and said this was "a tragic situation" for her relatives.
"The only consolation they can have is that she spent the last hours of her life, probably, with family and I'm sure it was a happy time for the family. But the awful tragedy is that the family don't even have a grave to visit."
Originally from Donegal, Ms Reynolds had lived in Balally Drive in Sandyford before her health deteriorated. She had been a resident at the nursing home for 18 months before her disappearance.
Ms Reynolds had spent Christmas Day with her family and was dropped back to the nursing home by her son at about 8.30pm. Staff noticed that she was not in her room at about 6am the following morning.
According to procedures, Ms Reynolds should have been checked at least every two hours, but Judge O'Neill said this did not happen on that night.
It was possible that Ms Reynolds could have been located if the checks had been carried out, he said.
Ms Costello earlier told the court that Ms Reynolds may have left the home through a door that may have been left unlocked after other residents had been returned later that night.
At the previous hearing, counsel for the Costellos asked if it would be possible to avoid a conviction.
Yesterday Judge O'Neill said he would not order the nursing home owners to pay money to charity instead of a conviction as this would place a value on Ms Reynolds' life "and I have no intention of doing that".
He recorded a conviction and fined Mr and Ms Costello €1,000 each. They must also pay costs of €1,250 each.
