Over 100 children wait up to five years for primary care psychology assessment in Cork and Kerry
Services treat children aged up to 17 who have mild to moderate mental health difficulties and non-complex needs.
More than 100 children and teenagers have waited four to five years for assessment by primary care psychology services in Cork and Kerry, new HSE data shows.
Among over 5,000 on “out of control” waiting lists, 319 have waited three to four years and 1,045 have waited two to three years along with 105 waiting the longest times.
These services treat children aged up to 17 who have mild to moderate mental health difficulties and non-complex needs.
So children struggling with a bereavement or emotional problems such as anxieties and fears or who need screening for developmental issues could be waiting.
The data also shows little change in funding for these services over four years despite growing numbers of patients.
The budget allocation for primary care psychology in this region was €2,075,892 in 2020 and rose to €2,199,414 this year.
The figures, released to Holly Cairns, Social Democrats party leader and TD for West Cork, showed 5,009 children were waiting by mid-May of this year.
Previous data issued to Ms Cairns showed 4,785 children waiting by early May, indicating a sharp increase in patient numbers.
“It’s clear from these figures that waiting-lists in the Cork/Kerry primary care psychology services are completely out of control,” she said.
She raised the earlier figures in the Dáil over a month ago, and her party colleague Roisin Shortall queried them in the Oireachtas Health Committee.
“We still don’t know from the HSE whether these figures are typical nationally, or represent a crisis that is particular to Cork/Kerry,” she said.
She called for action on behalf of these children and their families.
“The fact that 105 young people in the Cork/Kerry services are waiting four to five years for intervention is deeply shocking,” she said.
“We need the minister for mental health to take the situation in hand and devise an urgent plan to address this crisis in primary care psychology services in Cork/Kerry.”
HSE Cork Kerry Community Healthcare said they “sincerely regret” the waiting times facing children.
Referring to the jump in numbers during May, a spokeswoman said: “We acknowledge that the waiting list has grown further in recent weeks. The demand for the service continues to grow, and we are still facing staffing challenges.”
She said “more than half of the funded posts” in this service are vacant, with recruitment of psychologists “very difficult” at the moment.
All referrals are triaged when received so children can be directed to the most appropriate service, she said.
The HSE also operates the service for children with moderate or severe needs, the Child & Adolescent Mental Health Services (Camhs).
Parents whose children are waiting on psychology services are advised to contact their GP if the child’s needs increase during the wait, she said, as they could be referred elsewhere if that’s required.
These findings come almost one year since the Mental Health Commission warned under-funding of community psychology is leading to “some children presenting to EDs due to a lack of availability in community services”.
The MHC also talked about “a notable absence of community psychology” for children as part of their analysis on gaps in safety nets for young people in crisis.
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