Christopher O'Sullivan (Cork South West, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

The Minister of State will not be surprised to hear that west Cork is not immune to youth mental health issues. Young people today amaze me. They are bright, intelligent and incredibly good at opening up and speaking about issues. The level of anxiety out there is phenomenal and it is brought about by bullying, be that physical bullying, cyberbullying, pressures of social media, pressures of school, or circumstances in the home. This is causing significant anxiety, which has been highlighted and further exacerbated by the pandemic. We need interventions.

The findings of the report into south Kerry CAMHS were shocking and appalling. Those events should never have happened. In west Cork, there is an opportunity to expand CAMHS and provide a better service. I hope the Minister of State will take note of that. The CAMHS facility in west Cork, which is located in Dunmanway, is too small. Young people who come for consultations may be in the same room, which is divided by a partition. That is not ideal. There is a drive and push for clinical expansion based on the needs in the area. While keeping the current facility in Dunmanway, there is also an opportunity to open a new facility in the St. David's centre in Clonakilty to complement the Dunmanway facility. West Cork is a huge area and the CAMHS service extends from the Beara Peninsula to Bandon. Having a second hub is incredibly important. People have been told for some time that one is coming. The pandemic was used as an excuse and we should now drive on with that facility. I ask that the Minister of State look into this matter.

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