Dr. Brendan Doody:

It is not feasible for services to deliver the type of service that was delivered pre-Covid. Services must look at how they will deliver the maximum amount of service to the maximum number of young people who require the service at specialist mental health service level. The majority of children and adolescents accessing specialist mental health services access community mental health services. Numbers of referrals annually to community services are approximately 12,000. The first challenge is how we maintain that level of activity being mindful of the restrictions about being able to deliver the service with regard to public health considerations and the need to minimise the risk of the spread of Covid. We must look at a new service which is both delivering a service face-to-face but also remote access using technologies, and a more blended approach. At the same time, we must also scale up services in anticipation of an increased demand. We know, as Mr. Ryan said earlier, from international research and current surveys of young people with mental health difficulties that the Covid pandemic has had a negative impact on their mental health and that we need to be mindful of that. As we live in a time of increased uncertainty, we would expect increased levels of anxiety disorders and other mental health disorders. We need to look across the spectrum, from how people are supported in their mental health across services from community to primary care to specialist mental health services.