Mary Butler (Waterford, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I appreciate the constructive approach the Deputy has taken to this matter. Sharing the Vision is clear that people with mental health difficulties in the criminal justice system should have access to mental health services equal to that of the general population. Everybody is agreed on that. Many of the recommendations made in this report are reflected in Sharing the Vision and Sláintecare. Sharing the Vision recommendations include opening the new forensic mental health unit in Portrane, the development of intensive care rehabilitation units and psychiatric intensive care units nationally, and improving diversion, which is very important, to reduce the number of people with mental health difficulties within the criminal justice system. Implementation of Sharing the Vision is being driven by the independent national implementation and monitoring committee.

In line with Sharing the Vision, I have requested, and am committed to, an acute bed capacity review for mental health services. This review has commenced and will help address the capacity issues in our forensic mental health services. It will provide us with the necessary data on forensic mental health capacity, as well as data for communities and departments of psychiatry throughout the country. I am looking forward to that report. It is being worked on by the national implementation and monitoring committee and three subcommittees have been set up, so I thank them for the work they are doing in the background. There is a lot of work under way at the moment. We have one subcommittee on the bed capacity review, one on child and adolescent mental health services, CAMHS, and the waiting lists, and one on support for minority groups, the Traveller and Roma communities and women with mental health issues. A lot of work is under way.

On the Deputy's specific question, my understanding is that pilot is on target and a cross-departmental approach is being taken. I will check that out for him.

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