Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 29 July 2020
288. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Minister for Health if he will institute a campaign to assist young persons that have mental health challenges as a result of or exacerbated by Covid-19; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [19281/20]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe outbreak of COVID 19 throughout the world is a source of significant stress, anxiety, worry and fear for many people. This arises from the disease itself, as well as from impacts such as increased social isolation, disruption to daily life and uncertainty about employment and financial security.
The Government Action Plan in response to Covid-19, published on 16 March 2020, acknowledges the importance of people maintaining their wellbeing and resilience to push through this unprecedented outbreak. The Action Plan aims to reduce the risk of people becoming unwell and for those with a mild mental health issue, access to counselling and other interventions can provide much better positive outcomes.
A psycho-social planning Group (HSE, DoH, NGO sector) has been established to plan for additional current and/or anticipated needs as post COVID.
In line with the WHO considerations, and the existing HSE guidelines, the Department of Health and HSE proposes a continuum of supports and a ‘stepped care’ approach to support the mental health and wellbeing needs of the population during and following the COVID 19 outbreak. This includes establishing strategies to ensure youth mental health is protected as schools prepare to re-open and exam results are disseminated. As part of the mental health response to COVID 19, a 4 step health approach is preferred:
1. A whole-population approach to raise awareness and promote mental health and wellbeing that will include additional supports for Junior and Leaving Certificate students. The Department of Health (led by Healthy Ireland team) and the HSE, in collaboration with key cross-Government and cross-sectoral partners, has developed a new mental wellbeing campaign.
2. Provision of life skills supports through Jigsaw online, youthreach and Foroige etc.
3. Provision of additional online supports such as counselling online through MyMind/Turn2Me etc.
4. Provision of online psychiatry supports for individuals with new/existing complex mental health needs (referral through primary care GP or Jigsaw).
The support services available for young people and families are listed on www.yourmentalhealth.ie and Gov.ie.
The HSE’s June Activity Performance Report indicates that residential and community mental health service activity has returned to close to pre-Covid levels.
The HSE, overseen by Dr Colm Henry (Chief Clinical Officer) and Dean Sullivan (Deputy Director General), is considering how to reintroduce/recommence services. Public health advice will guide the return to more comprehensive provision. Through its Business Continuity Plan, HSE Mental Health is considering ways to safely improve services in acute units, community residential settings and community teams, including telehealth technologies. Further engagement with NGO partners will maximise delivery through SLAs.
To plan for the ongoing and increasing need for mental health services, and the demand for more holistic person-centred responses across the whole community, the national mental health policy, Sharing the Vision, was published on 17th June 2020. The policy sets out a 10-year plan, including education, prevention and early intervention and additional access routes to treatment. The policy takes a lifecycle approach, and consequently includes recommendations for CAMHS services and positive mental health promotion for young people.
The health service already has a range of proactive responses for any rise in service need. The Department and HSE continue to plan for any need surge as it arises and as services return to normal provision and capacity, subject to public health advice.
The Department of Health, with the HSE, will continue to monitor and maximise provision of CAMHS by the 71 CAMHS teams and 4 CAMHS inpatient units nationally for the remainder of the year, including HSE Service Plan activity levels. This ongoing performance monitoring will include full consideration of new approaches at national or local level to address waiting lists in an evolving Covid-19 situation.
The HSE has adapted provision of Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) supports in Covid-19, and clinically urgent cases continue to be prioritised. CAMHS patients continue to access a comprehensive range of mental health supports specifically for Covid-19 issues, as appropriate.
The HSE Service Plan has a specific priority to continue to develop CAMHS inpatient and community-based services, and their integration with primary care services, as well as Talk Therapy and Child Mental Health Intellectual Disability teams.
The new HSE National Forensic Mental Health Service (NFMHS) complex at Portrane, recently used for Covid-19 purposes, will become operational early next year. This will involve the opening, on a phased basis, of the main forensic hospital, the Intensive Care Rehabilitation Unit and a forensic CAMHs Unit.
CAMHS Connect is a new e-mental health initiative to modernise mental health care nationally. The need for the potential roll-out of such a system nationally, in planning for some time, has been reinforced by Covid-19.
CAMHS Connect will improve access, reduce waiting times and address some staff recruitment and retention issues. Overall investment for the initial phase, the new Castlerea Mental Health Hub, is in the region of €2.6m.
Alongside the HSE’s YourMentalHealth.ie website, several state funded agencies have developed new ways of working during Covid-19. These include online support, additional telephone support lines and online training and peer support. These agencies are working with the HSE to determine future need based on uptake and are working with the HSE psychosocial response team on flexible responses to identified needs.
