Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Senator for raising what is a very sad issue. As she said, services such as Console and many others that deal with suicide, bereavement or trauma are important to those who attend the services and those who work for them. When people avail of such services it is often at a very difficult time, or even the lowest point, in their lives, and it is traumatic for something like this to happen.

Funding for suicide prevention has increased significantly in recent years, from €3.7 million in 2010 to €11.5 million in 2016, including an additional €2.75 million which was provided in 2015 for extra resource officers for suicide prevention countrywide. The National Office for Suicide Prevention funds more than 40 individual organisations, including Console, and co-ordinates suicide prevention initiatives around the country. It also carries out research and training in this area. As Senator McFadden outlined, Console provides counselling, therapy and support to people who have been bereaved by suicide. It also operates a national free 24-7 helpline and provides counselling and therapy at Console centres or outreach locations in several centres countrywide, of which Athlone is one location. In addition, Console provides child psychotherapy services for children and adolescents in suicidal crisis or who have been bereaved by suicide, collaborating closely with the HSE child and adolescent mental health services. All of Console's services are delivered by fully qualified and accredited counsellors, psychotherapists or psychologists who operate to strict procedural and ethical guidelines and under strict clinical supervision. Its counsellors and therapists are experienced in addressing trauma, loss, crisis intervention and complicated grief.

The HSE audit into Console was initiated in April 2015 by the National Office for Suicide Prevention following an examination of the 2013 returns from Console to the HSE, which were received in late 2014. The HSE has confirmed that concerns arose in a number of areas, including the corporate governance and financial management of the agency.It should be noted that the HSE has informed the Department of Health that it has not uncovered any issues with the standard of the services funded through the executive. As the Senator has pointed out, much of the work that went on in her office is completely separate to the issues that have arisen. The audit process has been concluded and an audit report has been sent to the HSE's mental health division. The Minister and I were briefed by the latter on 4 July 2016 in respect of the HSE's audit of Console. At this meeting, we both emphasised that the continuation of services was an overriding priority. We were informed that An Garda Síochána had been provided with a copy of the audit report and that the Committee of Public Accounts will also be provided with a copy ahead of its meeting on 15 July. The Minister updated the Cabinet on these developments on 5 July.

On 7 July, a series of meetings involving the HSE, the Department of Health, ministerial advisers, the charities regulator, service providers and the interim CEO of Console, David Hall, took place. The purpose of the meetings was to clarify the current position with regard to Console and to consider how arrangements could be put in place to ensure the seamless continuation of the three services funded by the HSE and currently provided by Console, namely, the 24/7 suicide helpline, which is possibly the most critical, the suicide bereavement liaison service, and the suicide bereavement counselling service. The Minister and I met Console's interim CEO on 8 July and, since then, a lot of work has been done to ensure that the services provided by Console are continued. HSE management has assured the Department of Health that its first priority will be to ensure continuity of the various services provided by Console, having equal regard to the financial controls and the guidelines around the funding of agencies by the HSE.