Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 16 April 2015
23. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Health his views on staffing levels in child and adolescent mental health services teams across the country, detailing his plans to ensure that all vacancies are filled to ensure the protection of vulnerable children; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [14629/15]
Amharc ar fhreagraA core unit of mental health service delivery is the Community Mental Health Team, of which 63 Child and Adolescent Teams are in place nationally.
In line with the Programme for Government, my priority as Minister has been to modernise mental health services, notwithstanding the severe resource constraints overall in recent years, and to prioritise new resources to underpin implementation of A Vision for Change. The prioritising funding has been used to strengthen Community Mental Health Teams for both adults and children, to enhance specialist community mental health services for older people with a mental illness, those with an intellectual disability and mental illness, forensic mental health services, and to enhance access to counselling and psychotherapy in primary care and investment in suicide prevention measures. In this regard, the Government has provided an additional €125 million and some 1,150 posts since 2012, of which around 260 posts have been allocated specifically to the Child and Adolescent Mental Health area. Approximately 80% of CAMHS posts were in place at the end of March 2015, and the remaining posts are at various stages within the recruitment process.
As of December 2014, the number of staff in post in Community Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services was 522. Actual clinical staffing of such teams, including Adolescent Day Hospitals, increased by 47 posts from September 2013 to December 2014.
The HSE is acutely aware of the need to focus on recruitment of frontline staff, and is addressing difficulties to attract candidates to particular specialties and various parts of the country. Several national and international recruitment campaigns are underway for medical consultant posts, senior and staff nurses, as well as a range of required Allied Health Professionals and Support staff, including that relating to the delivery of a multidisciplinary Child & Adolescent Mental Health Service.
