Colm Keaveney (Galway East, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

The Minister made reference to difficulties in recruitment in his response, and I thank him for the clarity on the matter. However, one of the biggest difficulties we have with recruitment is the political decision to time-delay it. The HSE's service plan refers to a preference to recruit in December, not in January. Therefore, in the small print somewhere else there is a reference to not recruiting staff and a commitment to recruiting them, only for the HSE to hold off recruiting them until December.

I am pleased that the Minister referred to a patient-centred approach. However, what about the 3,000 children waiting each year for an appointment at the first point of contact in our psychiatric services? In the past two years, the Department underspent to the amount of €70 million, or 10% of the entire budget, in mental health. Yet 3,000 children will wait 12 months for an appointment.

The HSE has threatened disciplinary action. What about the Minister's role in taking action to protect staff and services? It is similar to what has happened in Cork University Hospital. The Minister or someone suspended a front-line worker for speaking out. This morning the HSE threatened to discipline someone for not being part of the cover-up of the scandalous delivery of services in Galway. That is what is happening. Those involved are not going to be complicit with the cracks and the cover-up and so on.

In the context of A Vision for Change, it is an absolute no-no and a breach of human rights to ask people in a mentally distressed state to access a unit that is creaking, falling apart and understaffed and then ask them to admit themselves to an accident and emergency unit. That is unacceptable. The Minister should take responsibility rather than shifting the burden of blame onto the staff. The staff are carrying the service despite the ineptitude and lack of commitment of a Minister who is out of touch and who has lost the confidence of front-line staff throughout the west of Ireland.

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