Alan Kelly (Tipperary, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I thank Sinn Féin for tabling the motion. I wish to raise an issue that is the subject of a report by Shane Phelan in this morning's edition of the Irish Independent. It relates to services in south Kerry and I am sure the Minister of State is well aware of it. It is a very disturbing report regarding a part of the country that is very close to my heart for personal reasons. People are sincerely worried about this issue because they do not know the scale of what they will be dealing with. What is the scale of this issue which has been spotted and with which we will have to deal in terms of dangerous amounts of medication possibly having been given to adolescents and children? What is the Minister of State aware of in the context of this issue? When did the HSE become aware of it?

The reply issued to Shane Phelan and quoted in the Irish Independent today indicates that it will take 16 weeks for an analysis to be carried. To me, that seems to be an extraordinarily long period for that to be done. It will be four months of anxiety for many young people, adolescents and their families. Some of the people in question do not even know they are affected. I ask the Minister of State to update the House on this issue, please. It is a very worrying situation. I am worried about the impacts on the young people in question, but also about how this happened in the first place. Furthermore, I am now worried about the length of time it will take to get to a first base of an analysis of what happened and what will be done. I note that the reply from the HSE states, "Most of the children whose files are being reviewed will have received appropriate care and clinical interventions." How does the HSE know that is the case? It does not know the scale of the issue and it does not know what has happened here. A line like that gives me worry that there was some level of awareness of this issue before it was brought to our attention through the media. I ask the Minister of State to respond to my questions on this issue.

On the broader issue of mental health that is before the House, issues relating to mental health are exacerbated by the fact that such an unequal society is developing in this country. That is at the root of many issues people face, no matter what age group they belong to. There will be extra issues in the context of service provision as a result of Covid. It is obvious that such issues are being experienced. Certain categories of people are particularly impacted, such as younger people and more elderly people. Younger people are affected by the direct impact on their everyday lives in terms of what they have been going through with regard to education or services. Elderly people have suffered as a result of isolation and the impact on their social lives towards the end of their lifespan. As we know a range of other issues will arise, and particularly in light of the high percentage of people who are and will be seeking to access services for the first time, what are the plans of the HSE in this regard?

A number of people, including the Minister of State, have mentioned waiting times. It is not good for the Minister of State to be standing up here and referring to patients receiving appointments within 12 weeks. It is just not good. That 12 weeks is a benchmark timeline for the provision of services is, frankly, scandalous. I am not saying the Minister of State is happy about the situation but she said we could get to that timeline. She has an urgent review and I wish her the best of luck with it but the situation is not good.

It is obvious we need a catch-up programme. Will the Minister of State outline what her plans are in that regard across all service provision? The fundamental problem is we do not have enough professionals, particularly in the public service. What are the Minister of State's plans to recruit providers of services into the provision of public health? Wrap-around services that extend beyond the immediate provision of mental health services need to be part of the public health system because otherwise there is a chain that can break down, and often does. What are the Minister of State's plans to launch a recruitment drive to ensure we can do this? That is going to take a considerable time because getting people into the public service in a professional capacity can, at times, be difficult.

That brings to me the issue of the bureaucracy around service provision. Many people who are looking for services are being forced to go to private providers. That causes issues and people should not have to go there in the first place. However, when they do and thereafter must engage with public provision, there is a bureaucratic chain that means there is a breakdown. That is unacceptable and must be addressed.

Services need to be provided 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. I do not need to remind the Minister of State of the scandalous situations where people end up waiting in accident and emergency departments at weekends because there is no service provision for them.

I also have a serious issue relating to information provision. The process by which we communicate to all the various cohorts, especially young people, needs to be improved dramatically. The most common cause of death from non-natural causes among 15- to 24-year-olds is suicide. How we reach out into schools, third level institutions and other forms of social areas in which young people are interacting needs to improve dramatically. Online outreach needs to improve dramatically because that is where most communication is now necessary.

Face-to-face counselling and interventions are always the best but I also believe that, in the world in which we live, we must dramatically improve how we reach the people using new technologies. I would like to see a special focus on that, including the use of video technologies. That can save time because it can be done at great speed. It prevents geographical issues and can be done over weekends. It is important we consider how that technology can be used.

I have an issue about the organisations under sections 38 and 39 of the Health Act 2004 and how they are going to be provided with the funding and supports to continue their work. We all know the State has abdicated certain amounts of geographical or other responsibilities for mental health services, as it has also done in many other sectors. Organisations, through goodwill, have operated and filled the gaps. The Minister of State has acknowledged that. In my town of Nenagh, Carmha has been offering excellent services over recent years because the services required had not been provided. Carmha is providing fantastic services on addiction and mental health but it is limited to fundraising.

It is not even a recognised section 38 or 39 organisation. This should not be the way it is. It is through sheer goodwill and community support that these services are operating, and Carmha is not alone around the country.

Furthermore, as regards Covid and how we come out of it, there is one issue we really need to examine. So many people have changed their lifestyle as regards working from home, the use of technology and the environment in which they work. That has sometimes brought additional pressures that are not acknowledged. As part of a holistic approach to how we ensure people's mental health is protected, collectively as a Parliament we must deal with issues concerning working from home. The working from home legislation, which we in the Labour Party have drafted and proposed, must be introduced to ensure that the always-on culture, which pressurises employees, is addressed, because there is no doubt that such attitudes and behaviour impacts on people way beyond their workplace.

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