Results 5,461-5,480 of 11,509 for speaker:Mary Butler

Written Answers — Department of Health: Mental Health Services (14 Oct 2021)

Mary Butler: As this is a service matter I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond directly to the Deputy as soon as possible.

Written Answers — Department of Health: Mental Health Services (14 Oct 2021)

Mary Butler: As this is a service matter I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond directly to the Deputy as soon as possible.

Written Answers — Department of Health: Mental Health Services (14 Oct 2021)

Mary Butler: As this is a service matter I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond directly to the Deputy as soon as possible.

Ceisteanna - Questions - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Budget 2022 (19 Oct 2021)

Mary Butler: I thank the Deputy for his question. This year saw the largest budget allocation to mental health in the State's history at €1.149 billion. The year 2022 will see an additional €47 million for mental health services, comprising the €24 million the Deputy mentioned for new developments, €10 million for mental health initiatives in response to Covid and €13...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Budget 2022 (19 Oct 2021)

Mary Butler: Due to my past as a person who was in business for 17 years, I was, and still am, really good at figures. Last year the budget for mental health was €1.076 billion. This year it is €1.149 billion, an increase of €73 million because of clearing the historical deficit, which will give me 350 whole-time equivalents. Last year, the extra €23 million I secured only...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Budget 2022 (19 Oct 2021)

Mary Butler: I am really glad the Deputy has given me the opportunity to talk about the primary care psychology list, because when I came into post last year I inherited the highest ever waiting lists in that area. I spoke at length with the Minister to see how we could deal with this. In the short term what I have put in place is as follows. For September, October, November and December of this year,...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Mental Health Services (19 Oct 2021)

Mary Butler: I thank the Deputy. I acknowledge the fact she has raised this several times. The Government remains committed to the development of the Castlerea mental health hub.  This project was announced in June 2020, comprising a new child and adolescent mental health service, called the CAMHS Connect day hospital and a psychiatry of later life day hospital.  In 2020, €800,000 was...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Mental Health Services (19 Oct 2021)

Mary Butler: I have a lot of control over certain things in mental health but I cannot control recruitment. I just cannot do it and unfortunately, it can take up to 50 weeks to recruit to a consultant's post. We also have to backfill the post that he or she is vacating. There are lots of difficulties with regard to recruitment. As I have said, 14 posts have been approved with €1.4 million in...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Mental Health Services (19 Oct 2021)

Mary Butler: I can only deal with the here and now and with the situation as it pertained when I came into post last July. We should look at the positives. This facility will be fully staffed by early 2022. It will be the first of its kind nationally and that has to be acknowledged and accepted. It will form the core of the new Castlerea mental health hub across HSE west and beyond. Having listened...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Mental Health Services (19 Oct 2021)

Mary Butler: I did not interrupt the Deputy. There is a huge amount happening and the €1.4 million that was allocated this year will be provided for staff.

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Mental Health Services (19 Oct 2021)

Mary Butler: I thank the Deputy for the question. The Government is firmly committed to developing all aspects of mental health services nationally. Both the Government and the Department of Health recognise the need for continued service improvement across the country.  The Mental Health Commission is the regulator for mental health services in Ireland and is entirely independent in its operation....

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Mental Health Services (19 Oct 2021)

Mary Butler: I knew from the Deputy's question that he was talking about the Owenacurra approved centre in Midleton being closed. We have had many conversations about this issue and I have met the Deputy to discuss it. As he knows, the Owenacurra centre is a long-term residential centre with 19 residents but also accommodates a mental health day service. As the Deputy will be aware, in March of this...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Mental Health Services (19 Oct 2021)

Mary Butler: I am very conscious as we speak tonight that this is home to 19 residents. I am very conscious of that in case anybody was listening. There is no blame game here, however. One person is not pointing the finger at the other. The situation is very clear. The premises, as all concerned have admitted, is not fit for purpose at the moment. At the moment we are making sure that every single...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Home Care Packages (19 Oct 2021)

Mary Butler: I thank the Deputy for her question. She has raised this issue with me on many occasions. The Government has prioritised improved access to home support services through an additional investment of €150 million in 2021 for these services, which has been maintained under budget 2022. Estimated data indicate more than 13.2 million home support hours had been provided between January...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Home Care Packages (19 Oct 2021)

Mary Butler: The whole premise of Sláintecare is the right care, at the right time, as close to home possible. All I ever want to do is listen to the voice and choice of older people and make sure we can support them with the correct wrap-around supports at home. As I have said, we are spending €666 million on home care every year. That is the budget. That was increased by €150...

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Home Care Packages (19 Oct 2021)

Mary Butler: I thank Deputy Murnane O'Connor for the question about home support specifically for people with dementia. Yesterday, I travelled to Kerry to open the 30th memory technology room for people living with dementia. This was the first purpose-built room in Ireland. We have 29 others. It is fantastic to see the money that was so hard fought for in the budget delivering on the ground. It makes...

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate: Emergency Departments (20 Oct 2021)

Mary Butler: I welcome the opportunity to address the House on behalf of the Minister, Deputy Stephen Donnelly. As Deputy Lahart has outlined so well, of course someone presenting to an emergency department is anxious and upset. The presence of Covid has made it more fraught. I acknowledge the distress that overcrowded emergency departments cause to patients, their families and front-line staff working...

Saincheisteanna Tráthúla - Topical Issue Debate: Emergency Departments (20 Oct 2021)

Mary Butler: I will bring the Deputy's concern back to the Minister, Deputy Stephen Donnelly. I am delighted to hear that they both visited the hospital recently and have seen the progress. Attendances at all emergency department are hospitals have increased throughout the country. It is a very worrying trend so early in the winter. We are facing into the possibility of the winter flu and the vomiting...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Home Care Packages (20 Oct 2021)

Mary Butler: As this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the deputy directly, as soon as possible.

Written Answers — Department of Health: Home Care Packages (20 Oct 2021)

Mary Butler: As this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the deputy directly, as soon as possible.