Ivor Callely (Dublin North Central, Fianna Fail)

I thank Deputy Ó Snodaigh for giving me the opportunity to respond on this Adjournment matter.

The Deputy is incorrect in saying there is chronic underfunding of mental health services at St. James's Hospital or that it has the lowest national funding despite the high level of need. I will go down the road some way with the Deputy and agree there are gaps in services and variances in the regions. We recognise that and the health reform package should address that.

However, a reform package will not resolve everything. We need to pull the package together through the right skill mix and the assistance of outreach workers. It is important the mix is right but it is not easy to get the appropriate multidisciplinary approach required at the same time and within a timeframe the Deputy and I would like to see it in situ. It takes some time to get a team working together to maximum capacity. If a member leaves suddenly or is moved, it takes time to build up the team again.

I hope the Deputy understands the need to pull different people together. A mix of people is required to participate in the provision of services in the section of the city to which he referred. Some of these services are statutory and some voluntary but they must work together. How we see this depends on how we count the number of beds. Is the Deputy talking about the total number of beds or the number provided by the health board? Is he counting the number of beds provided by the health board and the voluntary services and others working in the system? The Deputy has a perception or understanding that there is chronic underfunding and that funding in St. James's Hospital is the lowest nationally. However, if he looks at the overall picture, he will find the picture is changed.

Most Members of the House appreciate there has been tremendous change in recent years in the provision of services for people with a mental illness, especially since publication of the Planning for the Future policy which promotes integration in society. We should not lose sight of the fact that there has been tremendous change and that the quality of people's lives has improved greatly. People previously kept in an institutionalised setting are now being given opportunities in the community that heretofore they did not receive.

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