Cian O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay North, Social Democrats) | Oireachtas source

Dr. O’Carroll might add to that on the dual diagnosis side. A very important point he made is on the training and support for staff in services around trauma-informed care and empathy. Unfortunately, many of us, as public representatives, have seen staff in the local authorities or elsewhere sometimes not given that training and support, and then being in very stressful situations and not having the kind of interactions that we would all hope for or expect. That is understandable when they are not given that kind of training and support. It is important that this is done. It can be terribly humiliating for people trying to access a service when they are faced with somebody who is stressed in trying to manage with limited resources, and they come out of that feeling dehumanised. That is very important, and a lot has to be done to train and support front-line staff on an ongoing basis.

Dr. O’Carroll might comment further on dual diagnosis and what needs to happen to move that along because it has been recognised for several years as being under-resourced.