Mary Butler (Waterford, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputy very much for his question. There were two parts to it. We have seen increasing waiting lists for young people with mental health difficulties who need psychology supports. We have been running a waiting list initiative over the past three years that has proven very successful. We have targeted children who have been waiting in excess of 12 months. We have also looked at making sure that the waiting list is accurate.

In the context of the National Treatment Purchase Fund, there is a commitment in the programme for Government to look at this matter. However, the situation is very complicated when it comes to psychology or counselling supports. The purchase under the National Treatment Purchase Fund is that if there is a stand-alone issue that needs to be dealt with, such as a cataract or a hip replacement, it is easy to buy the service and pay for it afterwards. When it comes to counselling services, you will not actually be sure what you are buying. For example, it could be four, six or eight sessions. We have looked at it and it is proving very problematic, but we will continue this year with the initiative to reduce the waiting list psychological services.

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