Psychiatric nurses are to demand that all money realised from the sale of valuable lands and buildings at the existing Central Mental Hospital in Dundrum in south Dublin be re-invested by the Government in mental health services. The Psychiatric Nurses Association (PNA) said that despite record levels of funding for the health service this year, the share of the overall budget allocated for mental health has decreased. The PNA said that despite growing demand at all levels for mental health services the percentage of the overall health budget for mental health had actually decreased by one per cent. “And it comes despite Sláintecare recommending that 10 per cent of the health budget should be allocated to mental health, which is still below international recommendations. Of this mental health has a budget allocation of €1 billion which now means that the mental health budget has been reduced from just over 6 per cent to 5 per cent .”Mr Hughes said the new National Forensic Mental Health Services in Portrane which was scheduled to be completed and handed over to the HSE next month,was by far the largest capital development of mental health services in the State.

Source: The Irish Times November 26, 2020 07:07 UTC