Pa Daly (Kerry, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Gabhaim buíochas don Teachta Mark Ward, Joanna Kelly agus an fhoireann go léir i Sinn Féin. I also thank the public health staff, community and voluntary sector workers and those working in family resource centres whom I have spoken to in the past week. They have spoken of a major increase in demand for services to address issues such as anxiety, drug and alcohol misuse and concerns over sexuality, education, employment, poor self-esteem and behavioural issues. They mentioned the need for extra outreach community-based staff and upstreaming for those under 18 and over 65 years in particular, where services are practically non-existent. Were it not for the work of the Kerry Diocesan Youth Service, which works with some of the most vulnerable young people, and the Southwest Counselling Service, there would be little or no prevention, early diagnosis or counselling.

Residential and inpatient services are difficult to secure. Those I spoke to mentioned the need for funding, which is severely lacking and typically insecure or targeted at a specific area and cannot be used to fulfil demand. They mentioned the lack of respite care, poor awareness of resources and the need for a multidisciplinary approach.

The announcement by the HSE last night that a review of 1,500 cases in south Kerry alone regarding the possible over-prescribing of medication for young people is deeply troubling. Given that two students in an average class are now seen by or referred to CAMHS, we must have confidence that young people are getting the best medical mental health care possible. Serious questions will arise regarding oversight and how long this was known to the HSE. While we must wait for the review, we must consider did the lack of the services mentioned by the people that I spoke to in the last week such as the lack of auxiliary services, talk therapies, early intervention, social work and the lack of home help lead to a rush to chemical intervention.

The motion calls for a public crisis de-escalation team and an ambulance service in every CHO. There was but currently there is no day care centre in the town of Tralee where the chronically ill can call in, and a referral centre is not enough. If someone can attend a primary care centre in a Covid-19-compliant way, why can he or she not attend a day care centre. One needs to open on a 24-hour basis if the Government are serious. While GP referrals decreased, there is a concern about a flood of referrals. I call on the Minister of State to act now and to heed these warnings. How confident can we be that the requirements of those on the front line will be met when the list forwarded for vaccination and sent from psychiatric services to the vaccine roll-out team one month ago remains unanswered?

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