“Timing is everything in life, the time for mental health has now come”.
Alan Quinn-Byrne
Staff Writer
Recently, I sat down with Minister Kathleen Lynch in Leinster House, in order to ascertain her views and policy on mental health issues in Ireland today. The Minister is a pragmatic politician with a firm grasp of the realities surrounding mental health and a clear view of what needs to be done about them. The Minister addressed the role that both students and society can play in order to help her achieve her goals for a modern mental health system.
Current attitudes both political and public with regard to mental health have undergone significant and positive changes. Gone are the days when troublesome wives could be incarcerated in horrendous institutions known as lunatic asylums. Interestingly in previous times the iconic poet T.S Eliot was prescribed a lengthy holiday abroad as a cure for a nervous breakdown, in comparison his wife was committed to a private lunatic asylum where she spent the rest of her days. Of course Victorian gender attitudes were current and females were thought to be both unstable and hysterical.
Statistics from the World Health Organisation show us that nearly half of the world’s population suffers from an illness related to their Mental Health. A recent study in The International Journal of Nursing Practice has pointed out, that the figures for those suffering with a mental illness are particularly high amongst the global student population. Hardly surprising considering the stress those students undergo in their efforts to achieve academic success. In one such global study, the number of students suffering with depression over a 13-year time period doubled and worryingly the number of suicidal students tripled. This distressing situation has many contributing factors for example; university students in various disciplines have described their sense of the social isolation associated with the stigma of mental illness. They are often unwilling to seek help because of this perceived stigma. I believe it is our job to act collectively as a college community to help address this issue head on. How can we help those silent sufferers and ensure that their isolation is broken and that they can enjoy a relatively normal college life?
A major contributing factor on a national level to mental health illness and increased suicide rates is the severe economic downturn. With more people out of work and financial stresses and strains proving increasingly burdensome, Ireland now has a reported suicide rate of 10.3 per 100,000 in 2011. There were 12,216 presentations to hospital due to deliberate self-harm nationally and these statistics reflect only the visible sufferers. Untold numbers suffer in silence and alone. This problem is an ever increasing political, economic and social problem. The important issue of mental health it strikes at the heart of our moral consciousness. Our fellow students are suffering and we need to do more to help. So just what is the government’s main policy on mental health? How will the present minister deliver on it? We know that there is a long history of neglect and abuse in mental institutions in Ireland and I put the following questions to the minister in order to explore whether or not she can be a catalyst for positive change.
Q1 What is your vision for Irelands mental health system and how have you gone about delivering it?
“The policy ‘a vision for change’ was adopted in 2006. This clearly sets out how we should deliver on mental health. We need to adopt a mathematical formula to cover all aspects and to ensure that those in most need are catered for in a congenial environment.
The Minister believes that a community based approach is the only way to move forward to 2014 and beyond. It is her desire to have “more voices at the table” by this the minister means a significant participation by healthcare professionals and community groups in formulating polices for improvement to the mental health system. To help her achieve her goals the Minister has managed to have “35 million euro ring fenced” specifically for improvements to the mental health system. This is a considerable achievement in the light of Ireland’s present economic difficulty. An additional 414 new posts for healthcare professionals are to be created in areas such as clinical psychology and psychiatric nursing, The funding will also provide psychological and counselling services in the primary care setting and to fund additional activities on suicide prevention.
Q2. This reporter introduced the thorny issue of the Health Service providing an independent complaint system such as the system operating in Scotland.
The Minister referred to the Mental Health Commission of Ireland. She praised their work saying that they were under resourced for many years and in spite of this became a strong pressure group with a strong vocal approach. The Minister said, “Everybody knows somebody working for the Mental Health Commission”. However I have found this remark to be evidently untrue, on questioning many students’ tutors etc. I failed to find anybody who knew anybody on the mental health commission perhaps the Minister was engaging in political rhetoric. The Minister went on to say that although the work of the Mental Health Commission has been invaluable it doesn’t necessarily mean she would not be open to discussion on the advisability of setting up such an investigative body in the future.
Q3. As this is a student newspaper and suicide and mental health issues are pertinent among the student population , do you feel that students have a role to play in helping you as Minister to shape mental help strategy for the future and in what way should they do so?
“I believe that articles such as this play a useful role in creating student engagement with the issue. It is my ambition to raise awareness of mental health across all strands of Irish society. I want to increase the emphasis on mental health within the Irish universities medical schools. The minister further expressed her desire that “people should not be defined by their mental illness rather they should just view it as a bump along the road of their life’s journey”.
When it comes to the issue of mental health all political differences between the parties should be put to one side. Political Cooperation on this issue is vital without it rapid progress and expansion cannot happen. It is most definitely not a political football where points are scored by each side. I truly believe that Minister Kathleen Lynch has a strong determination to deliver on her vision for change but without a surety of political cooperation this may never come about. It is now up to us students and the public in general to be vociferous on this important issue and to subject our politicians to pressure thus ensuring that it is always present on the political agenda of all parties.
