The family of a young woman who was allegedly raped and assaulted as a child in the foster home said last night they hoped health staff would lose their jobs and face criminal charges for failing to protect her.
The woman, who has been referred to in media reports as “Sarah” – not her real name – is profoundly intellectually disabled and cannot speak. She was placed in the foster home in the 1980s, on the recommendation of the then South Eastern Health Board (SEHB).
Her special school was a three-hour round trip from her home and the daily commute was causing her huge distress, according to her family.
The foster home was closer to the school and her family was told by the SEHB an ambulance could bring her from the home to school. She came home to her family at weekends.
Her mother said she was playing with her in the living room of their home one evening when she was of primary school age. “I said something very ordinary and innocent to her. Her expression changed immediately . . . I knew immediately something was wrong.”
Damage to organs
According to the family, the girl was allegedly raped anally with implements while in the foster home. The damage done to her internal organs will shorten her life, they say.
When they brought their concerns to the SEHB at the time, in the early 1990s, they say they were not believed and were told they could be investigated for the alleged abuse.
They withdrew their complaint and moved their daughter to another care setting, ceasing contact with the SEHB.
The woman’s mother and a sister attended the five-hour meeting of the PAC on Tuesday at which the head of the HSE, Tony O’Brien, answered questions on the allegations surrounding the foster home and the HSE’s handling of them.
The woman’s sister said yesterday she wanted to believe Mr O’Brien’s comments. “I want to believe he will do everything in his power to find out the truth, that there will be accountability and that the staff will be fired over their actions, lies and cover-up. I want to believe that any staff member who knew and did nothing to protect innocent children from abuse will face criminal charges.”
Tribute
She paid tribute to her mother and to Sarah. “Yes, Sarah has an intellectual disability. It is part of her but not the true sum of her. Yes Sarah is a victim but it has not defined her.
She said the alleged abuse “has not taken away her desire for a full life, it has not prevented her from trusting others, it has not taken away her capacity to love or her wonderful hearty and infectious laugh. It has not diminished her role as a daughter, sister, aunt, friend or valued and a loved human being.
She said Sarah carried the emotion and physical pain of the alleged abuse “in silence on a daily basis and yet she survived”.
“ My sister Sarah is the most incredible person I know. She is a survivor,” she said.
