'I have nowhere to live after this house. I want to know what’s happening in my life'

A 17-year-old youth living under State care in a residential centre in Co Meath made an impassioned complaint to Tusla about delays in arranging after care for him as he approached his 18th birthday, an inquest has been told.

The inquest into the circumstances surrounding the death of Jordan Duffy from Tallaght, Dublin, was conducted in the presence of a jury by Coroner for Co Meath Nathaniel Lacy over two days in Trim in September and yesterday in Navan.

The youth took his own life and was found deceased in his room at Heather Lodge, The Mayne, Clonee, on 17th May 2020. Ciaran Craven SC with Lewis Mooney BL represented the Duffy family while Diego Gallagher, solicitor, represented the Child and Family Agency and Ciara Devin BL instructed by Mason Hayes Curran solicitors represented the HSE.

The inquest heard there were repeated delays in arranging aftercare for him as he approached his adulthood.

The jury was also told that at one stage he had been prescribed an anti-depressant drug which he self-administered. Dr Gerry McCarney, child and adolescent psychiatrist told the inquest that he had carried out an assessment of Jordan in February 2020 at the request of the Child and Family Agency to find out his capacity for decision making and the application to make him a ward of court. He had ADHD, autism spectrum disorder and a mild learning disability, all of which impacted his day-to-day function in engaging with life events. His intermittent substance misuse had added to his vulnerability.

He expressed the opinion that, given his vulnerability, he would not be expected to have the capacity and maturity to live independently. He had also expressed superficial knowledge of Tusla and his appointed guardian ad litem and he expressed concerns about his level of understanding.

Dr McCarney said there were concerns about social naivety, vulnerability to exploitation and concern that he could be manipulated by others.

“Jordan is a very vulnerable young man who functions at a level far below his chronological age and this is likely to persist over a long period of time and probably for the duration of his life. Jordan will need the support and services identified for adult autism and intellectual disability in relation to training, employment and supported living accommodation”.

In reply to the coroner Dr McCarney said that as Jordan mived from childhood to adulthood he wanted somewhere where he could have a degree of freedom and felt he deserved more freedom as an adult. He was talking about shared accommodation that would be supported by a professional person but not to a degree of supervision he was currently having. In reply to Mr Craven the doctor said he doubted if Jordan understood what wardship of court meant. Liz Cullen, social worker with the Child and Family Agency said she had carried out a desktop review of the services Jordan would have access to from the CFA. He had been received into the care of the agency in 2010 and a care order was granted in 2012. He resided with foster carers until 2018 alongside his younger brother and he presented as “a quiet young person and attended a special school where he was liked by staff and peers.

In 2018 he experienced a placement breakdown and he was then placed in foster care in Tallaght and Mullingar.

In Clonee he had developed into a very social young person, charismatic and charming with a unique style of humour. One of 10 children Jordan felt that family was the most important thing to him and he always expressed love for them, Ms Cullen said.

She said that it had been agreed that Jordan would remain at Clonee after the age of 18 under an interim wardship order with a guardian ad litem appointed to him. That order was to last eight weeks until 20th April 2020 but a further six week extension was granted because another centre was not ready to take him. The context of Covid-19 contributed to this delay. His case was almost continuously before the courts on a monthly basis because of the uncertainty around his after care placement.

In January 2020 the district court ordered that a capacity assessment be completed in relation to Jordan. An intermediary who was a speech and language therapist was to be provided to assist professionals when communicating with Jordan because of his difficulty in understanding wardship. This did not occur due to Covid-19.

“There was to be a third assessment by a medical officer on 18th May 2020.

Sadly this did not take place due to Jordan’s passing”, Ms Cullen said. In a letter of complaint surrounding the lack of certainty surrounding his aftercare placement and his frustration with that sent to Tusla by Jordan on 30th January 2020, he said: “I have nowhere to live after the house. I’m turning 18 on 25th February. I’ve not been told about my plan after I turn 18 and not taken into account what I want. She (unnamed) is refusing to listen to me on that I want or taking my choice on board. Nobody has come to me and informed me about my arrangements or any news whatsoever from either aftercare or social worker.

“I am very worried that I might go into homeless accommodation because this is stressing me out on a daily basis. I want to be informed about what is happening in my life. I would like to go into aftercare services with a little support for people my age and be at my level. I want to be able to go out and about without supervision because I am able to function well. I know the difference between right and wrong and can follow the law.”

The jury returned a narrative verdict that death was in accordance with the medical evidence given to the inquest by consultant pathologist Professor Muna Sabah.

The jury issued a number of recommendations – re the prescribing of the drug Lexipro that the GP prescribing it should make the recipient aware of all side effects, and that all care givers are made aware; re the flow of communication, that all care givers who have the resident’s medical information impart it to the medical practitioners who require that information so as to make an informed assessment; that the preparation of an aftercare plan begins when the young person has his/her 17th birthday and at the six-month statutory mark, if the plan is not completed, it is escalated to the highest level.

It is also recommended that the guardian ad litem (an independent, qualified professional appointed by a judge to represent a child’s voice in court proceedings) should commence a district court application to ensure the plan progresses in a timely manner

The young person should also be kept informed at all stages of the process in manner that they can understand.

The jury along with Mr Lacy and Garda Inspector Alan Roughneen extended their condolences to the Duffy family.