Lack of adolescent psychiatrists highlighted

DESPITE one in five children suffering from mental or behavioural disorders, Ireland has just one third of the required number of child and adolescent psychiatrists.

Instead of the 150 consultant staff needed to treat more than 177,000 children under the age of 15 with mental health problems, we have just 62 child and adolescent psychiatrists.

There are just 20 in-patient beds for those under 16 instead of the recommended 156, even though 71,000 children have moderate to severe mental problems.

A position paper published yesterday by the Irish College of Psychiatrists (ICP) catalogued years of Government failure to improve youth services despite successive reports highlighting what needs to be done.

ICP chair Dr Kate Ganter said very little had been achieved in terms of in-patient beds.

"We were promised eight new units [144 beds]. None have been provided and four have been in the planning stage for the past three years. There has been an increase in the number of psychiatrists, but not in the number of beds."

Dr Ganter said the Government needed to be put under increased political pressure to invest more in youth services.

Dr Brendan Doody, chair of the sub-group who drew up the position paper, said four years after the First Report of the Working Group on Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Services (2001) had recommended greater investment, funding had dropped. Mental health got just 6.8% of the health budget in 2003 down from 11% in 1997 with about 7% of that going towards youth services.

"The recommendations of that working group are Government policy, but here were are, four years later, getting 7% of 7%. The mental health budget is a small slice of the overall health budget, but child and adolescent services are getting crumbs." It recommended 15 person teams with a mix of professionals to provide a comprehensive, holistic service to children. In the outpatient sector, there are 40 teams the recommendation is for 59.