Martin Heydon (Kildare South, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I begin by congratulating the Minister of State, Deputy Helen McEntee , on her elevation to the new position of Minister of State with responsibility for mental health and older people. It is an area that the Minister of State has a huge commitment to and a passion for, and I look forward to working with her to help in our necessary improvement of mental health service provision.

Mental health issues affect all categories of citizen - male and female, young and old, urban or rural. There are no exceptions. However, today I want to focus on young people, specifically those living in County Kildare. Kildare has one of the largest populations of young people in the country and the majority of correspondence that I have received from constituents whom I have engaged with on this issue has come from younger members of the community who feel passionately about this issue who either have been affected themselves or had close family members or friends affected by mental health issues.

I believe much of the increased media coverage and discussion about mental health in recent years has been driven by young people who have suffered themselves or know friends or family members who have, and who, therefore, want to speak out about it. For too long mental health issues were not discussed or acknowledged in Ireland even though they have always existed. Bringing the discussion out in the open is one of the first key steps in helping to address these critical issues.

There are 77,832 persons between the ages of zero and 24 years in County Kildare, accounting for more than one third of the population. As I mentioned, this is one of the highest rates in the country and is also considerably higher than the eastern and midlands average. Research carried out by the Children and Young People's Services Committee found that current service levels in Kildare are not sufficient to meet the needs of the 77,832 young people in the county. However, Kildare has also one of the lowest funded youth services in the country, including those for mental health issues. That same report also highlighted that funding from the Department of Children and Youth Affairs in Kildare in 2011 was €13.55 per young person. This was the third lowest per capitaallocation in the State. Kildare also has one of the lowest funded mental health services per head of population, and this just is not good enough.

We have the Lakeview mental health facility in Naas, which is over 25 years old. It is a 29 bed unit that is in real need of significant capital investment. Lakeview, I understand, is constantly at in excess of 100% occupancy. We also have ten beds in Portlaiose taking an overflow of Kildare patients and in addition, in more recent times, we have had to go and use services in Tallaght as well. This has a significant knock-on impact on support services.

We also do not have enough high support hostel places as step-down facilities from Lakeview, meaning patients struggle to transition from the service following their time at Lakeview. I understand that a proposed investment plan has been submitted for consideration to the Department of Health and I would expect a decision to be taken on this as soon as possible to boost existing services in the county. This investment will be our attempt in Kildare to catch up with the rest of the country. Sometimes I feel that we in Kildare suffer from a presumption of wealth and our close proximity to Dublin. When it comes to mental health services, I believe that perception has damaged us in terms of investment. That must change.

I was surprised to see in the statistics provided by Mental Health Reform that 75% of mental health difficulties arise before the age of 25. That statistic is frightening, but backs up the need for services for our young people.

Credit is due to the many organisations providing services, in Kildare and nationally. From the great Samaritans to Pieta House, we have wonderful voluntary elements that are playing their part in providing the support needed to people when they reach out. We also have pilot programmes that need to be extended. Mojo is one such programme in Kildare town. This is a pilot project for men over 18 funded by the National Office of Suicide Prevention, NOSP, which has been very successful to date. While there is a commitment to continue the programme in 2017, the funding available through NOSP is limited and its future cannot be guaranteed. I call on the Minister of State to ensure that Mojo and programmes like it which are serving a real need in the community are continued through the allocation of increased funding.

The child and adolescent mental health service, CAMHS, in Kildare is simply not fit for purpose.

I have dealt with too many cases in which the need was not met by the service required. While changes are afoot to move services into the primary care centre in Kildare town, there seems to be an issue regarding funding from the primary care element. I will take it up with officials in the Department of Health to address the deficiency. While we have a very fine building that can help to improve the CAMHS facilities, they have not moved yet. We need it to happen very quickly.

I have dealt with cases of children as young as 11 years expressing suicidal ideation and needing to go to Pieta House, given that the services in the CAMHS in Kildare could not assist them. It is not good enough. While funding for mental health services was increased by 16% under the previous Government, more is required after decades of neglect. We need to get mental health funding up to 12% of the health budget in order to be in line with our international colleagues.

There is much more that I would like to say about the status of A Vision for Change. Mental health is a major issue which permeates many facets of society. We must improve how we deliver mental health services. If we do, it will go a long way toward dealing with many other issues. Continued investment in services is critical and I will use my voice to fight for it as long as I remain a Member of the House and beyond.

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