Jack Chambers (Dublin West, Fianna Fail)
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430. To ask the Minister for Health the measures the Government is implementing to address mental health issues among young persons, specifically the mental health services available to children in secondary schools; if the HSE will recruit mental health workers dedicated to treating young persons specifically; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [35956/16]

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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Promoting positive metal health, allied to improved services, continues to be a priority for this Government. This is evidenced by fostering mental health promotion through campaigns like the 'Let's Talk' and 'The Little Things' campaigns. These are directed at a whole-of-society level, including young people. Another example is the expansion of the Jigsaw service nationally, with the development of new youth orientated services at Dublin, Cork and Limerick.

In line with Programme for Government commitments to improve mental health care for young people, I recently convened the National Taskforce on Youth Mental Health that brings together perspective and insights from public, private, community and voluntary sectors. The Taskforce is operating as an action-oriented, decision-making group focussed on making improvements and getting things done. An over-riding objective is to achieve more integrated services, and to address identified gaps over current provision. It is working in collaboration with many different sectors and communities to improve:

- Emotional literacy around talking about mental health and reduce stigma;

- Awareness of services and supports;

- Accessibility to services and supports at different times and in different areas; and

- Alignment of services and supports across different providers (public, private, community, and voluntary).

The Government also recognises that schools play a vital role in the promotion of positive mental health in children, through strong working partnerships fostered between the Department of Education and Skills, the Department of Health, the Department of Children and Youth Affairs, and the Health Service Executive. For instance, one particular initiative in this area is progressing Well Being in Primary Schools: Guidelines for Mental Health Promotion. The whole-school implementation of the Social, Personal and Health Education framework at classroom and whole-school levels supports the effective delivery of mental health and well-being education.

The Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service has been prioritised in new funding made available by Government since 2012, designed to support timely access to appropriate services to address the mental health needs of all children, with the emphasis on the early intervention and integrated service. Additional resources and facilities means that we now have 67 Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service teams, and 3 Paediatric Liaison Teams, supported by 66 operational Child and Adolescent Mental Health beds nationally. The HSE is continuing to address acknowledged difficulties in recruiting and retaining specialist Child and Adolescent Mental Health staff, particularly Consultant Psychiatrists, to realise the potential for enhanced services overall.

The Deputy may rest assured that future improvements will be implemented in all aspects of our Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services for 2017 and beyond, arising both from the significant new funding provided by the Government in Budget 2017, and in the context of agreeing priorities for Mental Health under the HSE Service Plan for next year.