Kathleen Lynch (Cork North Central, Labour)

The units are not being closed, rather the position is under review. On what is proposed in A Vision for Change, we have not got our heads around what community care means in the context of mental health services. For instance, there is a community-based team in Cork, the members of which visit people in their homes, of which I am sure the Deputy will be well aware, not only on a regular basis but when there are acute emergency episodes in order to maintain them within the community. That is what A Vision for Change is about and what we should be seeking to achieve, whether it be in Cork or Ballina, County Mayo. We need to examine seriously how we can keep people out institutions and maintain them in good health in their own communities. While there will always be a need for acute beds when people have acute episodes, such care should be for as short a period as possible in order that we maintain people in their own communities.

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