CCTV footage has uncovered 1,500 crimes on a single ward of Muckamore Abbey Hospital in County Antrim over a six-month period in 2017-18, according to the police officer leading the investigation. The incidents occurred in the psychiatric intensive care unit, which treats patients with severe learning disabilities and mental health needs.
Detective Chief Inspector Jill Duffie described the case as the 'largest adult safeguarding case' of its kind undertaken by the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI). Speaking to BBC Radio Ulster, she said officers were examining more than 300,000 hours of footage 'minute by minute', revealing a pattern of repeated physical and mental abuse of vulnerable patients who could not report the abuse themselves.
Twenty staff, mainly nurses, have been suspended since 2017. Allegations first surfaced in November 2017, and by August 2018, 53 assaults on patients by staff had been reported, with five substantiated. The PSNI has been in regular contact with affected families, who understand the scale of the investigation.
DUP MP Gavin Robinson renewed calls for a public inquiry into the Belfast Health Trust's handling of the abuse, stating that 'every element of this horror story must be reviewed'. The Regulation and Quality Improvement Authority (RQIA) issued three enforcement notices against the trust over staffing, adult safeguarding, and patient finances, escalating its response after working with the trust since February.
The Belfast Health Trust acknowledged the notices and said it was working with partner organisations to develop a care model responsive to patients' changing needs.
