Colm Burke (Cork North Central, Fine Gael)
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519. To ask the Minister for Health if additional resources will be applied to general practices to enable sessional psychological and counselling services to be financed; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [46997/22]

Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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GPs are private practitioners, most of whom hold a GMS contract with the HSE for the provision of medical services to medical card and GP visit card holders without charge. Under the GMS contract, GPs are to provide eligible patients with "all proper and necessary treatment of a kind usually undertaken by a general practitioner". While GPs will often be the first point of contact for patients experiencing psychological or mental health difficulties, rather than providing long-term counselling support patients can be referred to dedicated mental health supports.

The HSE National Counselling Service (NCS) is available free of charge across the country to residents in the Republic of Ireland. The aim of the NCS is to support clients to improve their quality of life and reduce their psychological distress through the provision of evidence-based, professional, client centred counselling.

The Counselling in Primary Care (CIPC) service provides time limited counselling to adult medical card holders experiencing mild to moderate psychological and emotional difficulties such as: depression, anxiety, panic reactions, relationship problems, loss issues, stress. Counselling approaches include person centred, cognitive behavioural, psychodynamic, integrative and supportive therapies. Referral to CIPC is through a GP or local primary care team.

HSE Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) provide assessment and treatment for young people and their families who are experiencing mental health difficulties. CAMHS provides specialist mental health treatment delivered through a multidisciplinary team and access is provided through GP referral.

Furthermore, there are a range of resources available for adults and children with mental health difficulties provided by agencies with the support of the HSE, most of which can be accessed without GP referral.