Latest news with #Camhs
Irish Examiner
7 days ago
- Health
- Irish Examiner
'Very little has moved' on planned digital healthcare system
Digital healthcare will be a 'game-changer' for patients but concerns about the slow pace of progress have emerged. The Oireachtas health committee heard that a projected cost for the system cannot be shared yet. Health minister Jennifer Carroll MacNeill and Department of Health officials said this is due to ongoing negotiations with IT vendors. Frustration was expressed by some committee members, including Fianna Fáil TD and GP Martin Daly. 'Ten years ago, I sat in the Department of Health and we talked about all of this, and very little has moved, to be honest with you,' said Dr Daly. Department of Health assistant secretary Derek Tierney said the department is working towards a shared care record as a first step. This will join up existing IT systems, with plans to build a unified single system. This means, for example, if patients go to a hospital emergency department, staff could access their GP records, pharmacy data, and information on previous hospital visits. 'We've appointed a vendor, work is underway,' said Mr Tierney. The plan is to run a pilot in Waterford and its surrounding community this year. 'And then widen that on a national basis over 2026 and 2027,' he told Sinn Féin health spokesman David Cullinane. It is also expected to link up with digital health systems already in place in the North, which Mr Tierney said will be 'a game-changer' including for children. 'This takes time and effort, and funding commensurate with that time and effort.' The committee stage discussion of the Health Information Bill 2024 also focused on sharing of data between patients and healthcare workers. Questions were raised about a section which could allow doctors or institutions to withhold records temporarily. Ms Carroll MacNeill pledged to work on this, acknowledging that a specific time limit may be needed. Examples included where a scan shows a patient has cancer, this would be better disclosed in person first. 'Significant capital investment' During discussions on finance, she said 'very significant capital investment' will be needed to build a single system. 'We are in a live procurement process. It would require very significant capital expenditure,' she said. She said public expenditure minister Jack Chambers is supportive of their plans. Over time, they expect services such as Camhs (Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services) to be included. The system will cover medical card and private patients for GPs, she told Labour health spokeswoman Marie Sherlock. The committee also heard that the new national children's hospital will be the first paperless hospital in the State. Questions were raised about how records will transfer to adult hospitals still relying on paper charts. Maternity hospitals have seen benefits of a partial roll-out, with University Maternity Hospital Limerick the latest to go live. It is expected that 70% of women and their babies will have digital records by year's end. Department of Health assistant secretary Muiris O'Connor said patients will identify themselves in the system using PPS numbers. The HSE App is part of the overall plan, and the minister said 80,000 people have now downloaded the app.
Irish Examiner
14-07-2025
- Business
- Irish Examiner
South Kerry Camhs: Most children affected by over-prescribing now seek compensation
Almost all of the 240 children and young people found to have suffered as a result of over-prescribing in South Kerry mental health services (Camhs) have sought compensation. Mary Butler, the mental health minister, will tell Cabinet on Tuesday that, as of June this year, 230 applications had been made to the State compensation scheme set up in the wake of the Maskey report. Of 83 applications which have gone to mediation, 74 have concluded in settlement. Ms Butler will bring forward a memo detailing the deficits in care identified in the cases of the 240 young people attending services in South Kerry between July 2016 and April 2021. A separate lookback review into the care of children in North Kerry is being finalised by consultant psychiatrist Colette Halpin. New special classes Helen McEntee, the education minister, will update Cabinet on 400 new special classes to be provided in the coming school year while the vast majority of new special classes for September 2026 is expected to be sanctioned by the end of December 2025. Trade mission plan Peter Burke, the enterprise minister, will seek Cabinet approval to make a Team Ireland trade mission an annual event as part of market diversification plans. This year's mission to Canada will include key political meetings with prime minister Mark Carney. Future trade missions may include locations such as India, China, and the United Arab Emirates. State spending report Jack Chambers, the public expenditure minister, will tell Cabinet that State spending for the first half of 2025 is up on last year by 6.5% and capital expenditure up 22.5%. He will also note an allocation of €1.15bn from the EU's Recovery and Resilience Facility, marking 38% of Ireland's overall allocation to date. Legal processes reform Jim O'Callaghan, the justice minister, will seek Cabinet approval for the general scheme of a bill to implement the Kelly report recommendations which would see further reforms in discovery, judicial review, and civil procedure in the courts and jurisdiction in the circuit and district courts. Mr O'Callaghan will also update ministers on draft amendments to personal injuries guidelines submitted by the Judicial Council which propose an across-the-board increase of 16.7% in compensation awards in line with inflation since 2021. Renewables proposal Darragh O'Brien, the transport and climate minister, will bring the Renewable Heat Obligation Bill, which will require suppliers of fossil fuels used for heat to demonstrate a proportion of the energy supplied is from a renewable source.
Irish Examiner
04-07-2025
- Health
- Irish Examiner
Only 10% of people with ADHD have been assessed or treated, says charity
As little as 10% of people with ADHD in Ireland are prescribed with medication, despite a surge in demand. Ken Kilbride, the chief executive of ADHD Ireland, acknowledged an increase in prescribing but cautioned that it is from a very low base. A total of 25,715 patients were prescribed medication for ADHD on the medical card, or other public health schemes last year, compared to 10,327 in 2020, information released under the Freedom of Information Act showed. However, this needs to be compared with an estimated 5% prevalence rate for ADHD in Ireland, Mr Kilbride cautioned. 'There's probably about 250,000 people in Ireland that do have ADHD, so 25,000 taking medication is only 10%,' he said. 'We've gone from few thousand people up to 10% but there's still 90% that haven't been assessed or treated. Good start, more to do.' Non-medical management is usually the first step, he explained, and then medication in parallel with this, if necessary. There are private psychiatrists also supporting ADHD patients, but he said: 'There's only a handful to be honest.' Dublin South East had the most patients receiving reimbursements for ADHD medicines under the drug payment scheme at 1,261. 'They would have opened up a clinic there in the last couple of years, and the clinic got overwhelmed in terms of the number of people coming through it,' he said. 'They're not taking new referrals, and that clinic might be part of the Local Health Offices in Dublin South East.' In contrast, the data showed just 79 prescriptions on medical cards last year in West Cork, the lowest nationally. While there is a clinic in Cork City, he said: 'People living in West Cork are that little bit further out, so they're likely not getting into see them.' He added the figure of 79 is 'absolutely not' reflective of the likely true number there. Camhs He also raised concerns about waiting times for Child & Adolescent Mental Health Services (Camhs) in Cork and Kerry, also released under the Freedom of Information Act. It is accepted many of these children are waiting for ADHD assessment. 'At the top of the list children waiting 15 to 18 months make up about 70% to 80%, so people aren't getting seen quickly,' he warned. 'Why are people waiting this long? It is an indication of the lack of staffing in the service. The HSE will say we have moved this up the priority list.' He added: 'They have reduced the waiting lists but there's still more people on it now than two years ago because there's more people coming into the system.' Read More Cork and Kerry mental health services have fewer staff now than during staffing crisis two years ago
Irish Times
30-06-2025
- Health
- Irish Times
Children waiting up to nine years for psychology services
Children in Dublin are waiting up to nine years to be seen by primary care psychology services, new figures from the Health Service Executive show. These services are designed for children aged up to 17 who are enduring mild to moderate mental health difficulties. Each primary care centre usually has a team of occupational therapists, psychologists, nurses and social workers, with services including individual therapy, group-based therapeutic work for children, adolescents and parents, and various types of assessments. The types of support offered at this level tend to be brief and last for a specified length of time. READ MORE It is designed as early intervention before a child might need to be seen by a service such as the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (Camhs), which is for young people with moderate to severe mental health difficulties. However, new waiting list figures released to Cork East Social Democrats TD Liam Quaide following a parliamentary question show many have been waiting more than 12 months for early intervention. There were 1,838 children waiting for the service in the integrated health area of Dublin North County, with 732 of them waiting more than 12 months. The current longest wait time is nine years and one month. In Dublin North City and West, there were 2,816 children waiting for the service, with 1,155 of them waiting more than 12 months. The current longest wait time is seven years and nine months. The HSE said these longest-wait times were 'due to appropriate transfers from child disability network teams (CDNT) under the national access policy, with backdating to original date of referral to disability services. 'The longest waiting time for non-transfer cases is approximately three years and 11 months in Dublin North County and three years and six months in Dublin North City and West,' said the HSE. Meanwhile, in Cavan-Monaghan, 3,550 children are on the waiting list, with 2,345 on it for more than 12 months. The current longest wait time was four years. In Louth-Meath, 1,447 children were on the waiting list, with 260 of them there for more than 12 months; one child had the longest wait time of three years. Commenting on the figures, Mr Quaide said the services 'around the country are now in deep crisis, with waiting lists that are out of control. Staff morale is on the floor. 'One of the main purposes of primary care is to intervene early, before difficulties become entrenched and the young person might need either Camhs or a CDNT ,' he said. 'What the HSE has been doing is transferring large volumes of referrals from CDNTs into primary care, yet not recruiting the staff required to meet this level of need. 'The first step in addressing this crisis is acknowledging its scale. It is essential that the Government commits to a comprehensive recruitment drive in primary care services for young people.'
Irish Examiner
26-06-2025
- Health
- Irish Examiner
Letters to the Editor: Children with complex needs are being failed by the State
I am writing as the mother of an autistic child to share the painful reality many families in Ireland are still facing — a system that continues to fail children with complex needs, even when the signs are clear and parents are actively asking for help. My daughter was diagnosed with autism and dyslexia at the age of seven by a psychologist who, to this day, remains the only professional who truly saw and understood her, beyond her ability to mask. From the moment she began school, we communicated the challenges she was experiencing and the support we believed she needed. We were told that nothing could be done without a formal diagnosis — and once the diagnosis was provided, very little changed. Because she masked so effectively at school, our repeated and urgent concerns — raised almost daily — about the emotional crises she experienced at home were dismissed. We were told the issue must be at home, and that the school was already doing all it could. Despite her diagnosis, she was not offered a place in the autism spectrum disorder (ASD) class, and we were told no further support would be provided. We applied for a year to other schools with an ASD class and we are still on waiting lists. She was also not accepted by the children's disability network team, and primary care psychology services informed us that her needs were too complex for them to meet. We also underwent the assessment of needs, which was likewise not accepted — on the grounds that 'the definition of disability as defined in the act has not been met in this case'. When her emotional wellbeing seriously deteriorated, she was referred to Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (Camhs) — but her case was initially not accepted. Only after contacting government ministers was she taken on — but even then, with a nine-month waiting list. As we could not access therapy through the public system, we attempted to go private — but quickly found that the waiting lists were either closed or years long. After exhausting every local avenue and watching our daughter's wellbeing decline, we made the heartbreaking decision to relocate to Spain, where her needs were recognised almost immediately. She was granted the highest level of dependency and a disability. She now attends a school where she has her own classroom, a dedicated teacher, and regular support from a speech and language therapist and occupational therapist. We are grateful she is finally receiving the help she needs — but the damage from years of inaction has already been done. This is not just about the toll on our family — though it has been significant. My husband has remained working in Ireland for a year, only able to visit once a month, while I have been alone with our daughter in Spain, rebuilding her life, her mental health, and education. But most importantly, this is about the long-term impact on a 10-year-old child. She now faces an educational delay of approximately five years, which is extremely difficult to reverse. She lives with the psychological impact of having spent years in a system that did not provide her with a safe or supportive environment. She was a child with visible needs who was repeatedly overlooked, misunderstood, and effectively denied her rights, simply because she masked. This experience has left her not only behind in her education, but with emotional wounds from being dismissed by the very structures that should have protected and supported her. And sadly, her story is not unique. It should not take moving abroad — or escalating to ministers — for a child to be seen. No child should have to reach a breaking point before support is offered. And no parent should have to fight for years, every single day, for their child to receive even the most basic help. I share this not just for my daughter, but for every other child in Ireland still waiting — still unheard, still unseen, and still fighting for the support they deserve. Maria Martin, via email Detailing the truth of Jadotville My father was a 17-year-old private in Jadotville and remains in contact with many other veterans including John Gorman (the co-author of this letter), who was an 18-year-old private in 1961. John Gorman and my father enjoyed the part fictionalised 2016 Netflix film, The Siege of Jadotville, where John's character — as a member of No 1 Platoon, which took the brunt of the mercenary-led attack in Jadotville — was portrayed by the actor Ronan Raftery. The full truth of Jadotville however goes much deeper than that film and all of the evidence, including 21 veterans' eye-witness submissions, has been meticulously set out in the Independent Review Group (IRG) report 2021, an independent report (available online) compiled by historians, archivists, lawyers, and senior military personnel. The evidence as set out in the IRG report demonstrates that the officers on the ground in Jadotville made six medal recommendations, 24 recommendations for meritorious service or commendations and three recommended promotions for the 1962 medals board. The 1965 medals board also considered the final recommendations signed off by the battalion commander culminating in distinguished service medals (DSMs) being awarded to three men whose service included Jadotville, with a fourth being awarded later. Even if there had been a validated recommendation for 34 medals, this would not mean the automatic award of a medal. The petition for Cmdt Quinlan to receive a DSM was made during the course of the IRG research and submissions process (petitioned for by veterans including my father and John Gorman) and was accepted by the IRG as one of its 19 recommendations. Veterans like my father and John Gorman would like to pay tribute to former taoiseach Enda Kenny; defence ministers — notably Willie O'Dea, Paul Kehoe, and Simon Coveney; chiefs of staff: notably Mark Mellett and senior Defence Force personnel including Jackie McCrum and Paul Clarke, for everything they have done for veterans culminating in the award to veterans of the An Bonn Jadotville military medal for their 'leadership, bravery, courage and professional performance' in Jadotville — citations these veterans believe, rank it alongside the very highest awards in the Irish military. My father and John Gorman would also like to say a special thanks to the IRG for their dedication in compiling the evidence and detailing the truth of Jadotville, and to re-iterate their wholehearted support for its 19 recommendations. John Greene (son of Jadotville veteran Michael Greene), Brighton, UK John Gorman (Jadotville veteran and campaigner), Moate, Co Westmeath What's your view on this issue? You can tell us here Enact original Occupied Territories Bill Cynthia Carroll suggests full sanctions on Israel, stronger than the Occupied Territories Bill (OTB) — 'Time for general boycott and sanctions on Israel' (Irish Examiner, Letters, June 25). Her heartfelt call has already been made worldwide, to no avail. Immediate enactment of the real OTB (2018) in Ireland, sadly seems the best hope for the innocents of Palestine at present. Calling shame, on the inadequate efforts of the Western democracies, has also been tried. Some profit directly from supplying munitions of massacre. Others have binding strategic or commercial links, with the US or other supporters of the war on Gaza. Many express concern, but feel prohibited from taking effective action. Ordinary people, the world over, tend to be different. Free from political manoeuvrings, human empathy is their priority. Such Irish people acted long before the sanctions against South Africa, mentioned by your correspondent. Nelson Mandela described the activism of these shop workers as 'pivotal'. Starting in 1984, they shared a belief with people of the world, that together they could be a force for humanity. The Irish government conceded and imposed sanctions in 1987 and many countries soon followed. Mandela was freed from prison in 1990. The OTB has similarities to the strategy for South Africa. It reflects the greater complexities of the tragedy in Israel and Palestine. Its peaceful innovation is it focuses on illegality rather than blanket boycotts on blameless civilians. It also offers the potential for others countries to enact similar legislation, joining Ireland in a major movement towards dialogue and peace. Since its introduction, the OTB, has gained large majorities in the Dáil, Seanad and amongst the electorate. Astoundingly, since 2020 the Government has omitted, delayed and fundamental dilution of the OTB, without adequate justification. The survival of Palestinian people and their culture is imminent danger. In the absence of alternatives from a sad world, early enactment of Ireland's original OTB is the best way we can serve them. Philip Powell, Dun Laoghaire, Co Dublin Read More Irish Examiner view: Satire dead as Trump makes peace
