Martin Browne (Tipperary, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I commend Deputy Ward on identifying the need to bring this motion before the Dáil and on the work that has gone into compiling it. The measures he is bringing to the House are proposed as a six to 12-month emergency response to the needs that are building in our society, a society which has traditionally been served by an underfunded mental health sector.

I have been speaking to community and voluntary organisations and individuals about mental health service provision in my county of Tipperary, and this is what they are saying.

The State is relying heavily on the community and voluntary sectors. Yet in many cases, the funding provided to those sectors is meagre and short-term, like for three to six months. This tight and short-term view on the part of the Government means that many of these organisations spend inordinate amounts of time applying for the next funding allocation. It also means that some of these organisations remain uncertain as to whether the supports they provide now will be available to them and their clients in a few months' time. The Government must take note of this and act.

In a survey on mental health services in Tipperary, I have been told that the main obstacles in getting the help people need are as follows. First, there is a lack of services. Second, there is a lack of information about the availability of these services. Third, there is difficulty in travelling or getting supports nearby. The Government also needs to understand how much out-of-hours support services are needed and how stressful and upsetting it is for someone who is feeling suicidal to have to wait in an accident and emergency department for hours because of a lack of alternative out-of-hours services. What should also be of particular concern to this Government is that 48% of those who replied to us had been waiting more than six months for a mental healthcare appointment.

We are facing a crisis. I have been told of the following difficulties: people encountering different psychologists at each appointment; how travelling from south Tipperary to St. Luke’s General Hospital in Kilkenny is proving difficult for many and is a deterrent for others; how children with special needs are being left behind; how the families of people in need are left dealing with their loved ones alone; how the mental health aspect of addiction is largely ignored; and how the ongoing housing crisis is having a profound impact on people’s mental well-being. It is hard to believe that amid an unprecedented crisis, there has been no increase in the proportion of funding mental health services get from the overall health budget. We cannot just accept things like growing waiting lists for CAMHS services. That is why we are proposing to expand capacity in CAMHS and primary care mental health services.

This motion provides for additional counselling and therapy sessions, as well as removing medical card accessibility barriers to counselling in primary care. I urge everyone here to support this motion today. Every family in this country deserves it. After that, however, we need long-term ambitions that can be acted upon immediately. If that is beyond the capability of this Government, maybe it is time for another one.

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