Little change in cruel mental healthcare

I refer to your review (Life/Style, Feb 7) of the history of mental healthcare in Ireland by Richard Fitzpatrick.

Indeed, the history of mental healthcare in Ireland, as elsewhere, was ignorant and cruel. However, in 21st century Ireland our mental healthcare in Ireland is nothing to proud of, with underfunding and understaffing being the order of the day.

Over the past five years the mental health service has lost almost one-third of its staff, the vast majority being nurses. There are currently 1,500 vacancies within the service which the Government and HSE are refusing to fill. Spending on mental health services has fallen to a all-time low of 4.9% of the total health budget in 2012 (12% being the international WHO/OECD norm).

Promises of extra funding and staff recruitment have come to nothing, with savings and staff retirements far outpacing any additional funding or staff recruitment that has taken place.

The 2006 report A Vision for Change has been used to close the old Victorian institutions, but the community mental health services promised to replace the institutional care have largely come to nothing. Indeed, in many areas the limited and patchy community services available are now under threat.

A Vision for Change has become “A Vision for Closure” and a way of shortchanging people dependent on the mental health services for help and support.

With the closure of the large institutions many with mental health issues are merely displaced, with many joining the homeless and prison population rather than being reintegrated back into society.

In 21st century Ireland, suicide has become one of our largest public health issues, but continues to be largely ignored.

Far more people will die in Ireland in 2013 by suicide than as a result of road traffic accidents, yet 10 times more funding will be allocated to road safety than suicide prevention.

With the benefit of hindsight, 19th century mental healthcare was indeed ignorant and cruel. However, I fear that from the perspective of the 22nd century, the mental healthcare of 21st century Ireland will be viewed as just as ignorant and cruel.

Cormac Williams

Branch Organiser

Psychiatric Nurses Association

Kerry