As the Chairman, Deputy Moloney, has been delayed, he has asked me to step into the breach. I ask members to ensure their mobile phones are switched off for the duration of the meeting. Apart from a discourtesy to witnesses and other committee members it also causes serious problems for the broadcasting, editorial and sound staff as they interfere with the sound system.
The minutes of the meeting held on 5 April have been circulated to members. Are they agreed? Agreed.
In view of the recent tragedy in Wexford, I call on the committee to prepare a report on the lack of provision of services 24 hours a day, seven days a week. One of the common themes in these cases is that those involved try to access services, particularly at weekends. Many suicide attempts are made and families are often distressed outside the normal 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. working hours. There is an onus on the committee to produce a report on these services and forward it to the HSE. When people cry for help, there should be someone to listen and not a voicemail message. As recently as yesterday evening, the Irish Mental Health Alliance highlighted the number of people attending accident and emergency departments where no one is present to meet them and being forced to wait 12 or 24 hours for attention because personnel are not available.
This is not good enough. The response from the HSE is that liaison psychiatric nurses are deployed in X number of accident and emergency departments but the reality is a nurse only works 39 hours and, therefore, 129 hours are uncovered in such departments in any given week. More than one nurse is needed to provide full cover. The committee should produce a report and make recommendations in this area. Accident and emergency departments only provide a nominal service. This is a critical issue and tragedies such as that in Wexford must be avoided.
I support Deputy Connolly's comments. We have devoted extensive time to discussing suicide and writing reports in recent years but, yet again, no experienced psychiatric personnel were available to help people who were planning something serious. I do not wish to pre-empt the Minister for Health and Children's investigation but this is a serious issue. Deputy Connolly is also correct to raise the issue of accident and emergency units. People who have attempted suicide by taking drug overdose are discharged without seeing anybody because staff are not available and this is most unfortunate. It is all very well to talk about suicide but useful actions must be taken. It was interesting that the Samaritans seemed to have made the most urgent calls with regard to giving people their phone number if problems arise. The Samaritans responded rapidly to this tragedy, certainly on the radio, telling people they could contact the organisation if they felt in similar sad circumstances.
The proposal is that this committee invites the relevant agencies to explain what services are available so that we can make recommendations.
I agree. There is no shortage of plans. We are 16 months into A Vision for Change yet nothing has happened as there has been no implementation. We have reports such as the one from the Mental Health Commission. There are gaping holes in the service which have been identified yet nothing has been done about them. There is an onus on us to create an awareness and to make recommendations.
Some of the gaping holes are decades old. We have been talking for decades about setting up community services. They do not exist in some places.
Is the proposal agreed? Agreed.
