Results 7,841-7,860 of 11,299 for speaker:Colm Burke

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Non-Covid Healthcare Disruption: Mental Health Services (14 Jul 2020)

Colm Burke: I thank the witnesses for appearing to give us their views and advice on the challenging times we have experienced in the past three or four months. One of the problems I am coming across is that of young people aged over 18 who have challenges, either depression or mental health problems, and are distancing themselves from their parents. The parents, who want to give support, find it...

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Non-Covid Healthcare Disruption: Mental Health Services (14 Jul 2020)

Colm Burke: Is that an area on which we should do more work? In the case I found, the parents found themselves locked out. They could not get any information. They wanted to give supports but found they were hitting a blank wall in that regard. Should we have a more constructive mechanism in place to assist in that situation?

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Non-Covid Healthcare Disruption: Mental Health Services (14 Jul 2020)

Colm Burke: I want to move on to the Mental Health Reform report. Paragraph 2.5 states that many of the participants in a survey advised that they were no longer accessing treatment and were less likely to seek help from a GP, community mental health service, charity or voluntary organisation. In that survey, were people asked the reasons they would no longer engage with any of the services?

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Non-Covid Healthcare Disruption: Mental Health Services (14 Jul 2020)

Colm Burke: Ms Mitchell talks about the increased demand. How will she deliver on that demand if people who had already engaged with the service no longer want to engage with the same services they did previously? How does she now deal with that issue?

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Non-Covid Healthcare Disruption: Mental Health Services (14 Jul 2020)

Colm Burke: I go back to the issues regarding GPs. We said earlier that approximately 90% of support is provided by GPs. Is there not a pressure point with GPs in that one aspect of dealing with mental health is giving time to the individual but one of the problems we have is that GPs are under great pressure because of the volume of work they are doing? What additional supports do the witnesses...

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Non-Covid Healthcare Disruption: Mental Health Services (14 Jul 2020)

Colm Burke: Does Ms Mitchell feel there is a sufficiently joined-up approach to this? A GP running his or her practice knows that there are supports, but they are difficult to follow through on from his or her point of view. Should there be more co-ordination between GPs and the backup support services?

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Non-Covid Healthcare Disruption: Mental Health Services (14 Jul 2020)

Colm Burke: There is an issue as to the use of social media and young people. Is there a planned programme to do something on this issue and if there is, are all of the players involved in this, from young people, to the health service and all of the voluntary agencies involved, through a co-ordinated plan? It is very important to get that message out to young people and to address the urgent need to...

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Non-Covid Healthcare Disruption: Mental Health Services (14 Jul 2020)

Colm Burke: Is now the time to look at this and see how we can improve matters? A great deal of good work is being done, much of it by people on a voluntary basis, as well as by having very good professionals involved. Do we need to be far more progressive and consider what is being done in other jurisdictions? Now is the time to do that, rather than looking back at the matter in six or 12 months' time.

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Non-Covid Healthcare Disruption: Mental Health Services (Resumed) (14 Jul 2020)

Colm Burke: I thank the people who are here this morning for their work. It has been a very challenging time for everyone in the healthcare sector, and for those in the mental health care sector it is even more challenging. I thank them and all the staff working in mental health services for their contributions in dealing with this very difficult situation over the past four months. How many beds...

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Non-Covid Healthcare Disruption: Mental Health Services (Resumed) (14 Jul 2020)

Colm Burke: Did the occurrence of Covid tend to be in multi-occupancy rooms as opposed to in single occupancy rooms?

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Non-Covid Healthcare Disruption: Mental Health Services (Resumed) (14 Jul 2020)

Colm Burke: Would Ms Smyth agree that up to two people is not adequate in any one of these facilities?

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Non-Covid Healthcare Disruption: Mental Health Services (Resumed) (14 Jul 2020)

Colm Burke: Has a target been set for goals to be achieved in this area? Is there a timeframe within which we will try to have the single occupancy issue dealt with?

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Non-Covid Healthcare Disruption: Mental Health Services (Resumed) (14 Jul 2020)

Colm Burke: My next question is about the facilities for staff. I have received a number of calls where staff expressed concern that no appropriate changing facilities were available for them when they came to work and when they were leaving work. These complaints applied exclusively to mental health facilities.

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Non-Covid Healthcare Disruption: Mental Health Services (Resumed) (14 Jul 2020)

Colm Burke: Perhaps Mr. Ryan will come back to me in writing on that-----

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Non-Covid Healthcare Disruption: Mental Health Services (Resumed) (14 Jul 2020)

Colm Burke: -----to confirm there are appropriate changing facilities for staff for arriving at work and when leaving work, the same as those available in general hospitals. From the calls I have received on this matter, I understand that no facilities are available in some mental health units for staff changing.

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Non-Covid Healthcare Disruption: Mental Health Services (Resumed) (14 Jul 2020)

Colm Burke: Could I get in writing a confirmation that each unit now has appropriate changing facilities, be it showers or other facilities, available for staff, who are coming on duty and who are leaving duty?

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Non-Covid Healthcare Disruption: Mental Health Services (Resumed) (14 Jul 2020)

Colm Burke: Will the witnesses clarify the number of patients in mental health settings who contracted Covid-19? What kind of number are we talking about for those who were directly affected or who contracted Covid-19, and do we have numbers for staff also?

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Non-Covid Healthcare Disruption: Mental Health Services (Resumed) (14 Jul 2020)

Colm Burke: Is that for the entire country?

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Non-Covid Healthcare Disruption: Mental Health Services (Resumed) (14 Jul 2020)

Colm Burke: What is the number of bereavements?

Special Committee on Covid-19 Response: Non-Covid Healthcare Disruption: Mental Health Services (Resumed) (14 Jul 2020)

Colm Burke: Is that the total number who were in mental health facilities across the country?