A member of Tipperary’s Fight for Mental Health Services says the recent review is not a shock to staff and families of service users.
Sinn Féin activist Dean McGrath was speaking on the review of Child and Adolescent Mental Services in Ireland that found a lack of governance in some areas, a failure to manage risk, and a failure to fund and recruit key staff.
It also stated that CAMHS cannot currently provide assurance to parents or guardians in all parts of Ireland that their children have access to a safe, effective, and evidence-based service.
McGrath says staff have been trying their hardest and are at no fault.
He says there seems to be a postcode lottery around mental health services in Ireland.
“We’ve heard the postcode lottery stuff a lot; you know, families in different parts of the country do receive different levels of service. That is absolutely not good enough; we want a uniform approach. But also, if I could bring your attention to one little thing that they said, the recommended staffing was 50%; that’s the recommended staffing. A lot of areas in the country fell below 50% staffing. Doesn’t that say enough that our recommendation is 50% staffing? How low a target is that?”
A total reform and more holistic approach is needed following this review, according to McGrath.
The Sinn Féin activist says there simply isn’t enough funding for mental health services in Ireland.
“To carry out an effective service, we need to look at this in a more holistic way. In terms of the funding streams, of course, CAMHS is fighting with other mental health services, so when you hear government spokespeople and ministers talking about unprecedented funding that goes into the mental health services, it’s nowhere near enough by international standards or per capita. The report also highlighted that many areas in this state do not have an up-to-date IT system for processing appointments, prescriptions, and other such issues; the paper files are still being used, and the electronic systems are not up-to-date. So, when we’re talking about all this money, where is that exactly going?”
