Mary Butler (Waterford, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Okay, great. I thank the Deputy for raising this really important issue this evening. As she said, ADHD has long been recognised as one of the most common psychiatric disorders in children and it is now known to persist into adulthood. Core symptoms include inattention, hyperactivity and impulsivity. It can cause many issues in areas such as personal and social relations, education and occupation, managing money and organising life in general. There is also an increased risk of having other mental health difficulties with it such as anxiety and depression.

Children can access ADHD assessments through the National Educational Psychological Service. In addition to this, as per the CAMHS operational guidelines, CAMHS takes referrals for children up to age 18 with moderate to severe ADHD. As the Deputy said, that is exactly what happened to Rebecca. I am aware that prior to the inception of the national clinical programme, NCP, for adults with ADHD, which I launched in 2021 - it was one of the first things I launched when I came into the job - no specific ADHD public services were available for adults in Ireland. The NCP for ADHD is delivered as part of the HSE’s mental health service provision to ensure an integrated, person-centred response to adults with ADHD. The programme includes both assessment and treatment of the disorder and works collaboratively with voluntary agencies, including ADHD Ireland. It envisages a national service of ADHD teams with each team comprised of a consultant psychiatrist, senior psychologist, senior occupational therapist, clinical nurse specialist mental health and an administrator.

Enhancement for specialist mental health services such as ADHD is a key priority for me as Minister. Since 2021, more than €3 million has been made available for funding ADHD posts from programme for Government funding. This has enabled the set-up of five ADHD teams with recruitment of more than 25 posts, and two more teams are currently in development with posts funded for them. The two teams that are currently in development are in CHO 8 and CHO 7. We currently have five teams in place and the proposal is that we will get to 12 teams in total. I currently have five in place and two are being recruited. I want to be able to make sure the postcode lottery stops and that we have an adult ADHD team in every single area. I have prioritised it year-on-year to build it up and seek the funding. I have also allocated €150,000 this year to continue the collaboration with ADHD Ireland and the University College Dublin, UCD, school of psychology to develop an ADHD app and the understanding and managing adult ADHD programme, UMAAP. Both the ADHD app and UMAAP are two very positive resources for people experiencing ADHD. The app provides specific information for people who have or think they have ADHD, and it is very good with regard to self-care and signposting. UMAAP is delivered in a five-week workshop format and its aim is to provide education and tools on how to manage ADHD.

I am pleased to confirm that further to recent discussions between the Department of Health and the HSE to finalise that funding, it has been approved. I will launch that programme in April, as agreed with ADHD Ireland. Hopefully, it might be good for Rebecca. That is why I asked the Deputy about CHO 9. Currently, there is no team in CHO 9. We are missing a team in CHO 2, CHO 5, which is my own area, CHO 9 and CHO 1. There are seven in place with five more to do. I will announce another team shortly. I will go back and look at this again. It is really important for all the Rebeccas out there who do not have that particular support. She would be able to engage with ADHD Ireland and maybe do that UMAAP course. There is no doubt about it, however, that if a person has ADHD, it does not stop on his or her eighteenth birthday.

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