Holly Cairns (Cork South West, Social Democrats) | Oireachtas source

I will raise a range of mental health topics, including suicide. I thank the Leas-Cheann Comhairle for including this matter in today's Topical Issue debate. International Men's Day is on Friday, giving us a chance to reflect on issues relating to men and boys. Mental health is one of these issues. While it is a significant matter that affects everyone, a focus on men's mental health is important this week. The majority of people who end their lives in Ireland are male, being as high as 80% in some years. As of September, 437 people were recorded by the CSO as dying by suicide in 2018. Of these, 327 were men or 75%, and 110 were women. These figures and comparable ones for previous years demonstrate the need for a strong strategy to address male suicide. The situation is more nuanced, as we know that the rate among middle-aged men aged between 40 and 59 has been the highest of all age cohorts.

Research has shown that economic recession and increased rates of unemployment are associated with a decline in mental health and increased rates of suicide and self-harm, not only in Ireland, but across the world. Compounding this are larger gender issues, such as reticence to seek help, higher rates of alcohol and substance misuse, and belonging to an at-risk group, such as men who are gay, transgender, Travellers, victims of domestic abuse, migrants, former prisoners and rurally isolated. The State's response must acknowledge these complexities and work to address not only mental health, but also the larger societal conditions that exacerbate them and increase suffering.

I appreciate that the Minister of State, Deputy Butler, is committed to improving our mental services, but she can only work with what the Department is given.

Mental Health Reform points out that our national mental health budget represents only 5.1% of the total health budget, when the World Health Organization recommends 12% and Sláintecare recommends 10%. This deficiency is being felt with insufficient staff to meet current needs. When it comes to taking mental health seriously, campaigns and champions are important, but specialist healthcare will always have to do the heavy lifting. We need more therapists in the community and we need more psychologists, psychiatrists, nurses, social workers, occupational therapists and peer support workers in all HSE regions. The waiting lists for child and adolescent mental health services, CAMHS, also need to be addressed. The importance of early interventions cannot be overstated, and yet we have over 2,000 children and young people on CAMHS waiting lists. I have been working with families across Cork South-West to get help for their children, and I know most, if not all, other Deputies, are doing the same.

Another matter I have repeatedly raised is the lack of eating disorder treatment services. Tomorrow evening, RTÉ will broadcast a programme about men who live with an eating disorder, which is under-reported and is not spoken about enough. No funding was allocated under the national eating disorder treatment plan for 2020, and not one cent of the €1.6 million allocated in 2019 was spent. The Minister of State, Deputy Butler, has committed to making change in this area but we have to acknowledge that people are still not getting the treatment they need, as demonstrated recently by a young Cork woman who had to fundraise to get the inpatient bed she needs. There are only three inpatient beds in the entire country. All of those beds are in Dublin, yet eating disorders are the mental health conditions most associated with mortality.

The Government’s Sharing the Vision mental health strategy, launched earlier this year, will remain another hollow HSE document unless it is supported with the necessary funding. Medical and healthcare professionals and advocacy groups have repeatedly pointed out what is required to provide the proper mental healthcare for boys, men, and all who need it.

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