Mental healthcare - Government must act on suicide crisis

IT is a sad measure of this Government’s failure to tackle Ireland’s appalling suicide crisis that voluntary support groups should feel compelled to join forces to launch a national 24-hour helpline.

So frustrated have they become at the State’s delay in addressing this chronic social problem in a convincing manner that groups ranging from Belfast to Dublin, Cork and Limerick, are to set up a forum to share information and co-ordinate activities.

While the Government utters pious platitudes, the reality is that voluntary groups have lost patience with officialdom and are taking decisive action by creating a central contact channel in Dublin called Teen-Line Ireland.

If the Government is serious about tackling the suicide epidemic which is taking a heavy toll, on young men in particular, it must plough more money into mental healthcare. At present, this area gets a mere 6% of the health budget, though it accounts for 20% of health problems.

Ironically, the chronic underfunding of suicide support groups is highlighted by the fact that former US President Bill Clinton is reportedly to receive €100,000 as the keynote speaker at a dinner to raise funds for a nationwide suicide prevention programme.

In contrast, voluntary groups all over the country lack adequate resources to fund even the most basic support facilities at local level.

It would be impossible to overstate the level of frustration and scepticism at community level in the face of hollow Government commitments to suicide prevention.

With suicide accounting for more fatalities than the carnage on our roads, there are compelling reasons why the State should put far greater resources into devising more effective strategies for preventing this plague.

It is an issue that affects every community and virtually every family, either directly or indirectly. Hence the widespread feeling of resentment over the lack of official recognition for local initiatives.

In contrast with the North, where generous resources are dedicated to local initiatives aimed at combating suicide, the experience of voluntary groups in the Republic has been one of great difficulty in accessing funding. More often than not, help groups encounter barriers and obstructive attitudes from Government and health professionals.

As illustrated by the harrowing words spoken recently by the father of 28-year-old Sharon Grace, who drowned her daughters before killing herself, many people feel they cannot get the help they desperately require in their moment of greatest need.

The scale of this ongoing crisis is a damning comment on the inaction of Government. At a time when Irish society is driven by a culture of material success, there is an urgent need for the State to support community groups working tirelessly to support those struggling to cope with the numbing reality of suicide.