Martin Browne (Tipperary, Sinn Fein)
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2059. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills his plans to work with Trinity College with the intent of reinstating its specialist MSc in children’s mental health; to identify the number of courses that have the equivalent, specialised qualification; if he is satisfied that the discontinuation of this course will not negatively impact on the recruitment of specialised staffing into CAMHS; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38352/23]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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I understand that Trinity College Dublin has suspended the programme, MSc Mental Health, Child, Adolescent and Family Strand for the 2023/24 academic year .

Higher Education Institutions are autonomous bodies within the meaning of the Universities Act 1997, the Institutes of Technology Acts 1992 to 2006, and the Technological Universities Act 2018. As such they are autonomous in relation to their administrative and academic affairs and the courses offered by any institution are a matter for the individual institutions to determine.

This is a specialised course which requires applicants must be already working in the mental health sector with access to a clinical case load. It is a matter for the employer, in this case the HSE, to determine which qualifications they would deem acceptable for working in CAMHS. The impact on recruitment in CAMHS would be a matter for the HSE and the Department of Health in the first instance.

My officials are actively engaging with the Department of Health, the HSE and other relevant Health and Social Care Profession stakeholders to ensure that we can continue to deliver graduates with the skills necessary to support our healthcare system and support the strategic workforce planning by the health sector.

The number of first year enrolments and graduates on this programme (MSc Mental Health, Children Adolescent and Families (CAF) Strand) for the last five years available are outlined below, this data was sourced from the HEA student records system and is rounded to the nearest 5.