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Minister Lynch welcomes the publication of the Mental Health Commission’s Annual Report for 2012

Ms Kathleen Lynch T.D., Minister for Disability, Equality, Mental Health & Older People today (Wednesday 12

th

June 2013) welcomed the publication of the Mental Health Commission Annual Report for 2012 which includes the Report of the Inspector of Mental Health Services.

The Mental Health Commission’s function is to promote, encourage and foster the establishment and maintenance of high standards and good practices in the delivery of mental health services.

Referring to the Report the Minister said "I welcome the continued progress towards ending the use of outdated and unsuitable buildings to provide inpatient services and the continued development of child and adolescent units which has contributed to a decline in the number of admissions of children to adult units.However, I am disappointed that the pace of change towards a modern, patient-centred, recovery orientated mental health service is slower than we would like.It is also a concern the Inspector found that the overall compliance with regulation, rules and codes of practice in 2012 can only be regarded as fair with no significant improvement on previous years".

The Minister continued "The implementation of A Vision for Change remains a priority for this Government. We are committed to reforming our model of healthcare delivery so that more and better quality care is delivered in the community. To achieve this, additional funding totalling €70 million and almost 900 new posts have been provided as part of the last two Budgets primarily to strengthen Community Mental Health Teams for both Adults and Children.

High standards in facilities and in in-patient care must be the norm without exception. I want to see mental health services that are recovery oriented and that put service users, their families and carers at the centre".

Referring to the recent appointment by the HSE of a new Director of Mental Health the Minister commented "I welcome the recent announcement by the HSE of the appointment of a new Director for Mental Health which will pave the way for a significant change in the management of our mental health services and will be a key step to remedying many of the problems identified by the Inspector"

The Minister concluded by commending the Mental Health Commission for their continued commitment to the development and improvement of mental health services.