Colm Keaveney (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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335. To ask the Minister for Health if he will provide in tabular form the regional breakdown of the community mental health positions appointed following the budget 2012 €35 million allocation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2078/14]

Colm Keaveney (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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336. To ask the Minister for Health if he will provide in tabular form the regional breakdown of the community mental health positions appointed following the budget 2013 €35 million allocation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2079/14]

Colm Keaveney (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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337. To ask the Minister for Health if he will provide in tabular form the proposed regional breakdown of the community mental health positions appointed following the budget 2013 €20 million allocation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2080/14]

Kathleen Lynch (Cork North Central, Labour)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 335 to 337, inclusive, together.

This Government has prioritised the reform of our mental health services in line with A Vision for Change and is committed in particular to the delivery of more and better quality care in the community. Additional funding totalling €70 million and some 900 new posts have been provided as part of the 2012 and 2013 Budgets primarily to strengthen Community Mental Health Teams for both adults and children and to enhance specialist community mental health services for older people with a mental illness, those with an intellectual disability and mental illness and forensic mental health services in line with A Vision for Change.

Recruitment of the posts approved for both 2012 and 2013 is continuing. As at the end of November, 2013 the recruitment process is complete for 376.5 or 91% of the 414 posts approved in 2012 with a further 17.5 or 4% of posts in the final stages of the recruitment process.

Of the posts approved in 2013, the recruitment process is complete for 137.5 or 29% of the posts, 134.5 or 28% have been accepted and are being processed for clearance and 165 or 35% are at earlier stages of the recruitment or HR process. The posts related to the €35 million allocated in 2013 will continue to come on stream and are targeted to be completed in Quarter 2 of 2014. A tabular breakdown of the current position in relation to 2012 and 2013 posts is shown below.

There are, however, a number of posts for which there are difficulties in identifying suitable candidates due to factors including availability of qualified candidates and geographic location. The HSE's National Recruitment Service is currently working to ensure that the remaining posts will be filled as soon as possible, from existing panels or through competition in the absence of panels, at the earliest opportunity. Options to enable more local recruitment are also being considered where this will assist in filling specific posts. I have received assurances from the HSE that the recruitment process for these posts is being given priority within the HSE.

In Budget 2014, the Government has again re-committed to the continued development of our mental health services in these extremely challenging times, where the options for additional expenditure generally are very constrained. €20 million is being ringfenced for the further development of our mental health services in 2014. This means that, despite serious resource pressures overall, funding of €90m has been made available since 2012 up to end of 2014, which has been specifically ear-marked for mental health and suicide prevention.

This funding will enable the HSE to continue to develop and modernise our mental health services in line with the recommendations of A Vision for Change and will allow for the recruitment of between 250 and 280 additional staff to further enhance our -

- Adult Community Mental Health Teams

- Child and Adolescent Mental Health Teams

- Specialist Mental Health Teams

The HSE is currently preparing a National Mental Health Divisional Plan which will detail further its objectives in 2014 and will include prioritised actions for each Mental Health Catchment Area. Decisions on the regional breakdown of the new 2013 posts will be made following a business case and analysis process. This will ensure that the required professional grades are recruited to fill identified gaps in the service. The recruitment process for these new posts will commence in the first Quarter of 2014, with all posts targeted to be in place by Quarter 4 of 2014.

Progress in Recruitment of 2012 posts per region and initiative as at 30 November 2013

Progress in Recruitment of 2013 posts per region and initiative as at 30 November 2013

Róisín Shortall (Dublin North West, Independent)
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338. To ask the Minister for Health further to the announcement in July 2012 on the recruitment of a number of additional primary care staff, the number that were filled by 31 December 2013; the target month in 2014 for when each of the remaining posts will be filled; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2093/14]

Alex White (Dublin South, Labour)
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The recruitment process is ongoing in relation to the of 264.5 Primary Care Team posts, which were announced in 2012 and approved in 2013. The position as of 6^th January 2014 is as follows:

- 160 posts filled or start dates agreed;

- 51 posts offered / start dates still to be agreed;

- 17 posts in final stages of recruitment (subject to Garda clearance, etc.);

- 36.5 posts recruitment process ongoing (unable to fill in first recruitment campaign).

The HSE is striving to have all posts filled as soon as possible in 2014.