Mental health services in the spotlight
The poor level of services provided for people with mental health issues in north Tipperary is a national scandal, according to the Cathaoirleach of the Nenagh Municipal District, Councillor Seamus Morris.
His comments come as the new Minister of State with responsibility for Mental Health, Mary Butler, visited the county on Monday to meet with Oireachtas members to discuss the state of mental health services in the county.
AT THEIR WITS END
Councillor Morris told The Guardian that much of his time as a public representative has been spent making representations on behalf of families of mentally ill people who are at their wits end because of the lack of services being provided for their loved ones.
Councillor Morris deplored the fact that that patients in acute need of long stay care had to be sent to Ennis for treatment as there are no long stay bed facilities in all of Tipperary.
He said the unit in Ennis was far too small to cater for the number of patients needing care, with the result that some people were being discharged far too early back into the community while still unwell, causing great distress for the patients themselves and their families.
SHORT STAFFED
Councillor Morris said the level of services available within North Tipperary after 5pm in the evening was virtually non-existent. The services on the ground were short staffed and the problems were compounded by staff turnover.
"We have a seriously deficient health service in North Tipperary - our level of services are a national scandal," he said.
A representative of the Tipperary County Council on the HSE regional board, Councillor Morris said he would be raising the issues around the dire lack of services once Covid-19 related restrictions on the holding of meetings of the board resumed.
"I have spoken to gardaí in Limerick who tell me that the unit in Ennis is failing people with mental illness," he said.
He said gardaí had told him of cases were they were having to deal with mentally ill people on the streets of the city who required admission to the unit in Ennis, only to see them back on the streets in subsequent days. "It's a political scandal that more politicians are not beating a political drum about this."
Councillor Morris made his comments after he was contacted by this newspaper after the The Guardian received representations from a young man in his twenties who said his father was in severe mental distress and was not getting the care he needed.
CRIPPLING DEPRESSION
The young man said his father, who currently lives in Lower Ormond, was raped as a child and now suffered from crippling depression. Efforts by his family to get him the care he needs have failed.
"There is no help out there for people with mental health problems," said his son.
Speaking after the meeting of the minister with Tipperary TDs in Clonmel on Monday, Fianna Fáil TD Jackie Cahill welcomed the commitment from Minister Butler to progress the plans for a Jigsaw hub in Thurles.
Deputy Cahill said: "Tipperary has been long overdue attention in the area of mental health services. Since my election in 2016, I have raised the need for Jigsaw services in the county as we battle with our own mental health crisis, among young and old. I am delighted that the minister has confirmed to me the funds are ready and waiting for the project and that she will meet with officials from Jigsaw to discuss the plans further in the coming days."
He continued: "It would be our hope to deliver Thurles as the initial hub and expand the services to other towns and villages across the county, such as Clonmel, Carrick on Suir, Tipperary Town, Cahir, Nenagh, Cashel and Roscrea."
"Access to adequate mental health services has undoubtedly been one of the single biggest issues raised from the public over the last number of years. I am delighted that as the only government TD in the county, I can fight for these services at the core of where the decisions are made and I hope to keep the pressure on this to ensure the speediest delivery possible."
Meanwhile, Independent TD Mattie McGrath has said there is an "urgent need" for improved mental health services in Tipperary. Deputy McGrath said he raised the issue of mental health services with the Taoiseach Michéal Martin during leader's questions in the Convention Centre in Dublin on Wednesday of last week.
The Clonmel-based TD said the fight for improved mental health services in Tipperary had been given new momentum with the revelations that over €700,000 was spent on works to the former Saint Michael’s Hospital in Clonmel as part of the Covid-19 response.
ST MICHAEL'S HOSPITAL
He said this had happened despite previous announcements that the building was no longer fit for use for in-patients.
"Now that this work has been carried out at Saint Michael’s we need to look at it again for the delivery of improved mental health services in a post Covid-19 environment. With the previous Minister’s acknowledgement that the closure of Saint Michael’s was a mistake and that Tipperary has a need for long stay beds, we have a real opportunity to push this forward now particularly with the appointment of Minister Butler whose constituents in West Waterford are directly impacted by the lack of mental health services in South Tipperary," said Deputy McGrath.
He said that he will work to ensure that mental health services in Tipperary are placed firmly on the Government’s agenda and has welcomed the Taoiseach’s commitment to work to deliver improved mental health services in Tipperary.
At Monday's meeting with TDs, Minister Butler stopped short of committing to re-open Saint Michael's, saying that improvements made to the building were still not sufficient to bring it up to specifications to provide acute services for the mentally ill.