The Muckamore Action and The Society of Patients and Friends of Muckamore as well are the ones that stated they require better quality of leadership at the Belfast Trust and RQIA, the health regulator. The comments were made during the last sitting of the inquiry that involved the investigation of abuse of vulnerable people at the facility near Antrim. A barrister for patient families contended, "In essence, the lack of accountability is the hallmark factor that enables abuse to persist.".
The inquiry was told, "Our clients detailed the accounts of staff who are resentful towards people in the community placements because they are the very same people responsible for retraumatizing them. The inquiry was later informed by the families that "community placements are as bad" or even "in a few cases worse" today. "There exists, at this juncture, a categorical absence of knowledge of the cause of the problem and the appropriate remedies to it," the inquiry was told. "At the top level, no person has resigned or has been removed from office despite the repeated crises," the attorney made at its address.
The inquiry was informed by the families through descriptions of the abuse as "horrible, long-lasting, and quite common.". They stated they believe the misleading CCTV evidence uncovered in 2017 was "the tip of the iceberg, if at all.". The families complained about the inquiry's statement that "there has always been abuse at Muckamore, even when there was no CCTV to record it.". They pointed out that the government's attention to the matter should have been defined as a factor and that they have "little confidence in the ability of the trust to correct its failings.".
They also accused the Department of Health of the neglect in this matter. At one of the inquiry's afternoon sessions, a barrister representing a different group of families questioned the fact that a consistent culture of abuse could be inflicted over a long period. Conor Maguire KC stated, "The top was under the illusion of right conduct and thus failed to detect and fix the problem at the root." "At the top of the department, bills tried to cover up the malpractice. We need to find out who knew about the abuse and what measures they took or didn't take to stop it," he inquired. "The abuse was in many cases perpetrated on patients, and it was evident for all." How could a system with errors and omissions in care provision for people with learning disabilities come to exist?"
Such was the recommendation of Muckamore Action and SPFM family groups. They said they needed to have "a completely funded, staffed, community-based service with current and up-to-date governance systems and leadership and management that is also familiar with learning disability services as well as an effective regulator and advocacy services.".
They suggested that the placement of CCTV in community placements should be implemented as a way to safeguard the safety of the patients. They stated the change of culture settings and a manner in which to recognize staff malpractices are needed. "Healthcare assistants have to stop running around the healthcare system by finding new jobs." Families have also been told to be properly informed and involved in decision-making processes by legal representatives, they said.