GPs call for 24/7 psychiatric services

Community psychiatric services need to be available 24/7 to address the country’s high suicide rate, general practitioners urged yesterday at their annual conference in Limerick.

The conference backed a call for urgent improvement in out-of-hours community psychiatric services for patients in crisis.

Emmet Kerin told the National Association of General Practitioners’ conference: “The Department of Health and the HSE have done some tremendous work in terms of raising awareness of suicide and educating the public around suicide prevention.”