Counselling service sees 33% rise in client levels

A counselling service in Co Kerry has reported a 33% jump in the number of people accessing its services and needing support in the past five years.

Last year, the South West Counselling Centre in Killarney supported 1,510 individuals, an increase of over 200 on the previous year.

Dr Geraldine Sheedy, centre director, said more people were presenting in crisis and/or feeling suicidal. But, as demands continued to rise, Government funding was on the decline.

“We have never been more dependent on fundraising to ensure the sustainability of the service,’’ she told the centre’s annual general meeting.

Dr Sheedy said Kerry LifeLine — which provides free counselling and support for suicide prevention and intervention — received no Government funding and was entirely reliant on fundraising efforts.

The centre, this year celebrating its 20th anniversary, expanded its services by introducing a number of workshops and seminars to the community, schools and sports clubs, as well as a new bereavement support group.

The addition of Kerry LifeLine and the support of Suicide Awareness and Prevention have also impacted on the demand for the centre’s services.

“South West Counselling Centre remains indebted to the local community, our fundraisers, supporters and friends of SWCC who have contributed time, expertise, and money to providing this vital service.’’

Two new directors — well-known GAA personality Mickey Ned O’Sullivan and Fr Padraig Breheny, of the Franciscan Friary, in Killarney — were welcomed to the centre’s board of directors.

Meanwhile, Kerry, which has one of the country’s highest suicide rates, may be the focus of an ongoing, national research programme by the National Suicide Research Foundation.

Two extensive research projects have already been carried out in Dublin and Cork and the foundation will be targeting counties such as Kerry in the next three years.

According to the foundation’s research, Cork City has the highest suicide rate in the country, 17.6 per 100,000 population, followed by Offaly on 15.5, with Kerry sixth on 14.5.

Research would involve interviews with bereaved families and doctors and psychiatrists who may have treated victims.

Inquest files would also be examined, including cases where open verdicts are returned a cause of death.

The coroner for south Kerry, Terence Casey, has been outspoken about isolation and loneliness in rural Ireland and about high rates of suicide affecting all age groups, not just young males, in his area.

He has called for a national campaign, akin to road safety campaigns, to prevent suicide.

Mr Casey, a Killarney solicitor, has also called for a more prominent display of notices about helplines in places of entertainment and public resort.

* The South West Counselling Centre can be contacted on 064-6636416, or by email on [e-mail]. Visit www.southwestcounselling.ie or www.facebook.com/southwestcounsellingcentre.killarney