Mental Health Backlog Needs To Be Addressed - Lowry
Deputy Lowry has raised concern over the long delays currently in place for
children and young adults seeking to access Mental Health Services in Co. Tipperary.
Further to a Parliamentary Question laid down by Deputy Lowry it has been
confirmed by the Minister for Health and the HSE that half of the children on waiting
lists in Tipperary have been waiting over a year for an appointment with Child and
Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS).
Deputy Lowry stated; “Mental health services in Tipperary are currently at crisis point. At present we have 58 children in Tipperary currently awaiting assessment. Of this number 28 have been waiting for longer than one year.”
“Whilst this figure may not seem excessive in each case this means a child going
without assessment and diagnosis. This means a year without help, support or
treatment, a year of being left in the dark. It means no additional help in school and
distressed and concerned parents. Continued research and clinical evidence has
proven the importance of early intervention and the need for children to be assessed
swiftly and as young as is possible. However the reality being seen is that when you
deny resources you get late interventions which in all too many cases can result in a
lifelong psychiatric condition which could have been prevented.”
“It is deplorable, demoralising and dangerous to force children to wait for such
essential services in this way. It is cruel beyond belief to put these children and their
families through this distress and is essentially treating those children as second class
citizens. I continually see first-hand the despair and frustration being felt by families
who are continually fighting to secure the care and assessment their children need
and where all too frequently they meet with a brick wall.”
“The staff in CAMHS in the HSE Mid-West are doing a stellar job but the reality is
that they are grossly understaffed and simply cannot handle the volume of cases
seeking assessment. They are doing all in their power to tackle the backlog but they
are overwhelmed. There are only 3.5 Whole Time Equivalent Staff in place where
actually there should be 18.”
“This issue needs to be addressed by the Minister with the utmost haste. Whilst
some steps are being taken to bring more staff on-board in the coming months more
needs to be done, and done immediately. It is cruel, callous and unfair to have such
a situation in place. The Minister should be cognisant of the distress that is being
caused as a result of this situation and move to immediately tackle this backlog.”
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Thursday 23 May 2013
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