THE NUMBER of children detained in special care units this year is forecast to double, putting “extreme pressure” on Health Service Executive resources, a senior HSE manager has warned.
Aidan Waterstone, HSE childcare and family specialist, said yesterday he expected 40 children to be admitted to special units by the end of the year, which was double the figure of 20 in 2009.
He told a newly formed Oireachtas subcommittee on children the situation is very challenging for the HSE, which has just 17 beds available in special care units, which provide care for children and teenagers with the most serious behavioural problems.
At least 28 children have already been placed in special care units this year compared to just 20 children in the whole of 2009.
Mr Waterstone said he would prefer not to speculate on the reasons for the “significant increase” in admissions as research had not been completed. But he said a national project team was reviewing the situation and working to establish new units.
“We have managed but it is very challenging . . . The average length of stay in a unit is about three months,” he told reporters after the committee meeting.
Focus Ireland, which works with vulnerable young people, said drug abuse is one factor in the growing number of people exhibiting challenging behaviour.
Mike Allen, director of advocacy at Focus Ireland, said there was a real need for investment in “early intervention” to support young people and their families before their behaviour becomes a crisis.
There are three special care units in Ireland: Gleann Alainn in Cork, Coovagh House in Limerick and Ballydowd in Dublin. These units house children who show serious behavioural problems and may be “at risk” of self harm or suicide. A High Court order is needed to admit children to the units.
In September the Health Information and Quality Authority said Ballydowd should be closed because it was “no longer fit for purpose” and “represented an unsafe situation for the children placed in special care units”.
Mr Waterstone said refurbishment had already taken place to allow children to continue to be placed in this special care unit.
Senator Frances Fitzgerald told the committee the 100 per cent increase in special care admissions was worrying and reflected a lack of “early intervention. It seems to me children have to be suicidal before they are assessed and can access services,” she said.
Phil Garland, assistant national director, HSE children and family services, told the committee 49 per cent of children seeking mental health services are seen by a consultant within a month and 70 per cent within three months.