Niall Blaney (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister of State for making herself available at such short notice. It was just last Friday morning that I rose here to ask for such a debate. I am glad it is happening so soon. It is only right as it is a relevant topic that should have the attention of most of us.

There has been much good discussion today. I will first discuss our schools. The younger cohort in primary schools do not have the same access to social media etc. and they do not currently have a voice. Before making the rest of my comments, I appeal to the school unions to put their heads down and do their best to get the children back to school and sort out the questions around the leaving certificate.

The pandemic is causing mayhem. A recent medical journal article by Dr. Brendan Kelly of the department of psychiatry in Trinity College Dublin, entitled "Impact of Covid-19 on Mental Health in Ireland", outlines the widespread concern about the impact of Covid-19 and associated restrictions on mental health. He reports that evidence to date demonstrates that the combined effect of the Covid-19 pandemic and the associated restrictions is that approximately one person in every five in the general population in Ireland has significantly increased psychological distress, including anxiety and depression. Risk factors include being female and living alone. Rates of significant psychological distress among healthcare workers are approximately double those of the general population. To alleviate this, healthcare will require careful rostering, ability to take leave, organisational support from employers and, where necessary, psychological first aid. The Covid-19 infection affects mental health both immediately through depression and anxiety and, most likely, in the longer term, especially among those who are hospitalised, through traumatic stress and post-viral syndromes.

Last year, Maynooth University and Trinity College Dublin studied 1,000 people in March and April, during the initial restrictions, finding that 41% of respondents reported feeling lonely, with 23% reporting clinically meaningful depression, 20% reporting clinically meaningful anxiety and 18% reporting clinically meaningful post-traumatic stress.A peer-reviewed study of 847 members of the public in Ireland between March and June 2020 also found significant increases in incidences of depression, anxiety and stress, compared to before the restrictions. A survey of 195 psychiatrists of the College of Psychiatrists of Ireland, conducted in May and June 2020, found that the majority reported increased referrals for generalised anxiety disorder, where there was a 79% increase; health anxiety, with a 72% increase; depression, with a 57% increase; and panic, with a 54% increase.

All these things culminate in the need for Government action. That is why we are having this debate and it is what we are calling for. While many propositions will be made in this debate today, we are going to have to adopt an approach to this issue that is new and different, and other to what has been done heretofore. I know that waiting lists have been addressed in the past, with the National Treatment Purchase Fund. Other countries are adopting initiatives such as giving vouchers to GPs. We may need to do something like that, and give vouchers to GPs for those who do not have access to or cannot afford to see psychiatrists or psychologists, etc. I know that across the Border people are given vouchers, even just to go to the gym. We must think outside of the box. I welcome the opportunity to address this issue today.