Sinn Féin TD demands urgent reform of mental health care
By ArdeePost Reporter
Sinn Féin TD Calls for Urgent Reform of Emergency Mental Health Services
Sinn Féin TD Joanna Byrne has called for urgent and comprehensive reform of the State’s emergency mental health services, warning that current arrangements are failing people in crisis and, in some cases, placing lives at serious risk.
Speaking ahead of a Sinn Féin motion on emergency mental health services, Deputy Byrne said the Government’s approach is fundamentally flawed and continues to leave vulnerable people without the specialist care and support they urgently need.
Thousands in Crisis Turning to Overcrowded EDs
Deputy Byrne highlighted that tens of thousands of people present to emergency departments each year in the midst of a mental health crisis, including people experiencing suicidal ideation and severe psychological distress.
She said overcrowded and chaotic emergency departments are not suitable environments for those in crisis.
“People experiencing suicidal ideation and severe mental distress are being forced to turn to emergency departments that are simply not designed to meet their needs,” she said.
“This is the result of years of government failure to properly fund and deliver mental health services, both in the community and in acute settings.”
Lack of Community Supports Driving ED Pressures
According to Deputy Byrne, the absence of essential services such as crisis intervention teams, therapy services, out-of-hours care and safe crisis spaces leaves people with no alternative but to attend emergency departments.
“When vital supports are missing, people are left with no option but to turn up at EDs,” she said. “That is a failure of planning and investment.”
‘Postcode Lottery’ in Life-Saving Care
Deputy Byrne also highlighted serious regional inequalities in access to emergency mental health care, describing the current situation as a “postcode lottery”.
“There are currently 11 counties without a Suicide Crisis Assessment Nurse (SCAN) service,” she said. “That means your access to life-saving mental health care depends on where you live. This is completely unacceptable.”
She noted that County Louth has just one Suicide Crisis Assessment Nurse, underlining the pressure on already stretched services.
Gaps in Emergency Mental Health Facilities
The Sinn Féin TD also raised concerns about the lack of appropriate facilities within hospitals, revealing that eight emergency departments nationally do not have suitable spaces for mental health crisis assessments.
Locally, at Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital in Drogheda, Deputy Byrne said the Consultation-Liaison Psychiatry team is not available outside certain working hours.
As a result, out-of-hours mental health patients attending the emergency department are initially assessed by general ED nursing staff and may then be transferred to the Drogheda Department of Psychiatry for further assessment, depending on clinical urgency.
Sinn Féin Proposals for Reform
Deputy Byrne said Sinn Féin’s proposals are focused on fixing and reforming the system, rather than continuing to manage its failures.
“Our Private Members’ Bill is about ensuring that every major hospital has a dedicated mental health emergency room, staffed by specialist professionals and completely separate from the chaos of general emergency departments,” she said.
The party’s motion also outlines a long-term vision for specialist mental health crisis centres, alongside better use of local hospitals to provide crisis services closer to communities and outside overcrowded major hospitals.
‘Dedicated Mental Health Emergency Rooms Save Lives’
Deputy Byrne stressed that people in crisis need calm, safe and supportive environments.
“People who are in distress need a calm and safe environment, where they will be seen in a timely manner,” she said. “The last thing they need is to be left wandering emergency department corridors alone.”
“Dedicated mental health emergency rooms save lives.”
Call for Immediate Action
Deputy Byrne concluded by urging the Government to take urgent action to ensure consistent, safe and specialist mental health care is available to people experiencing crisis, both locally in Louth and right across the country.
She said meaningful reform is essential if emergency mental health services are to meet the needs of those who rely on them most.
