Just 4% of mental health staff hired

Just 4% of the 477 mental health staff promised in 2013 had been recruited by the end of September according to Mental Health Reform (MHR), prompting them to question if next year’s budget allocation will translate into staff on the ground.

While the national coalition gave a guarded welcome to the announcement that €20m has been ringfenced for mental health, MHR director Dr Shari McDaid said services are continuing to lose staff and services are under pressure.

“Of the 477 staff promised for 2013, just 4% had completed the recruitment process as of the end of September. We are concerned that once again this year there has been a significant delay in spending the €35m promised in Budget 2013. We want to see early agreement on the plans for spending the 2014 funds so that the same doesn’t happen again next year,” Mr McDaid said.