Louth TD Joanna Byrne has called for urgent reform of Ireland’s emergency mental health services, warning that the current system is failing people in crisis and placing lives at risk.
Speaking ahead of a Sinn Féin motion on emergency mental health care, Deputy Byrne said tens of thousands of people present to emergency departments each year while experiencing severe mental distress or suicidal ideation.
“People in mental health crisis are being forced into chaotic and overcrowded emergency departments that are simply not designed to meet their needs,” she said
Deputy Byrne highlighted what she described as a “postcode lottery” in access to care, noting that 11 counties currently do not have a Suicide Crisis Assessment Nurse (SCAN) service. County Louth has just one SCAN nurse, she said.
She also pointed to infrastructure deficits nationally, stating that eight emergency departments do not have appropriate spaces for mental health crisis assessments.
Deputy Byrne joined us on The Agenda this morning to talk to us some more about this.