Prisoners with mental illness face a waiting list to get on the waiting list for help, inspector finds

The Irish Prison Service said the provision of appropriate mental health services to those in custody was 'one of the major challenges' to effective healthcare in prisons

There is a waiting list for prisoners with a serious mental illness to get on another waiting list to access the country’s forensic psychiatric hospital, the prisons' inspector has said. File picture

There is a waiting list for prisoners with a serious mental illness to get on another waiting list to access the country’s forensic psychiatric hospital, the prisons' inspector has said.

In a report on Limerick Prison, the inspector said this may have led to a reduction in the numbers of prisoners on the waiting list for admission to the Central Mental Hospital (CMH) as this list does not include those who are awaiting assessment.