David Stanton (Cork East, Fine Gael)
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Question 231: To ask the Minister for Health and Children if further to Parliamentary Questions Nos. 516 and 519 of 19 January 2009, the inappropriate placing of 263 children in adult in-patient mental health facilities in 2008 puts Ireland in violation of its obligations under the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child she will seek an exemption in the public sector recruitment embargo to enhance the existing multidisciplinary community child and adolescent mental health teams and to appoint further teams to allow for the necessary provision of age appropriate facilities; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [9046/10]

John Moloney (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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I accept that it is inappropriate to admit children to units providing care and treatment to adults but I recognise that in the absence of an alternative, such admissions are sometimes necessary for the safety and treatment of the child. In arriving at a decision to admit a child to an adult unit, due consideration is given to the risks to the child of not admitting him /her, and the potential adverse effects of such an admission. The Mental Health Commission has issued a code of practice relating to the admission of children under the Mental Health Act 2001 which outlines arrangements and facilities that should be put in place to ensure the protection and safety of such children. An addendum to this code of practice was issued by the Commission in June 2009 which provides that:

No child under 16 years is to be admitted to an adult unit in an approved centre from 1st July 2009;

No child under 17 years is to be admitted to an adult unit in an approved centre from 1st December 2010; and

No child under 18 years is to be admitted to an adult unit in an approved centre from 1st December 2011.

If, in exceptional circumstances, the admission of a child to an adult unit in an approved centre occurs, the approved centre is obliged to submit a detailed report to the Mental Health Commission outlining why the admission has taken place. The HSE has prioritised the development of mental health services for children and adolescents. During 2009 the bed capacity for children and adolescents almost doubled, bringing the total number of in-patient beds to 30. In addition, two purpose built 20-bed units are under construction at present in Cork and Galway.

The Employment Control Framework for the HSE specifically exempts certain front line grades in the health sector from the moratorium including Consultants, Speech and Language Therapists, Occupational Therapists, Clinical Psychologists, Behaviour Therapists, Counsellors, and Social Workers. Posts in these key grades which become vacant may be filled and a limited number of new posts may be created within the overall numbers ceiling and moratorium policy. Funding was provided to the HSE in 2006 and 2007 for the development of child and adolescent mental health services and in 2009 additional funding was provided to allow for the recruitment of 35 therapy posts for the child and adolescent mental health service. This funding has enabled the HSE to further increase the number of multidisciplinary Child and Adolescent Mental Health Teams to 55 by the end of December 2009; a further eight teams are currently in development.