Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Tuesday, 21 May 2024

Joint Committee On Children, Equality, Disability, Integration And Youth

Review of Barnahus Model for Young People who have Experienced Child Sexual Abuse: Discussion

Ms Helen Shortt:

I will talk about the different services within Barnahus. There are medical services that are also forensic medical services, and I will come back to that and give some more detail. There is a child welfare element, which is the Tusla service. It employs social workers and therapists because the trauma-informed approach within Barnahus needs a brief intervention and a trauma-informed approach. Our colleagues from the Garda also have a role. Through the HSE and the medical side of CHI, all children who come to the Barnahus have the services of consultant paediatricians who have a special interest in forensic medical services. They are specifically trained-----