AN INISHOWEN councillor
has slated the Government's decision to freeze
funding for the National Office for Suicide
Prevention at last year's level.
Sinn Féin's Cllr Pádraig MacLochlainn called on the
Health Minister to clarify her position on the role
of the National Office for Suicide Prevention and
the Government's commitment to dealing with suicide
in Irish society.
"Despite the growing tragedy of suicide among
communities the length and breadth of our country
and despite all the rhetoric from government about
seriously addressing this issue, we now find that
there is to be no increase in 2008 in the budget for
the National Office for Suicide Prevention," said
Cllr. MacLochlainn.
"This makes a mockery of all the fine words uttered
by Minister Harney and her colleagues with regard to
suicide prevention and mental health generally."
Cllr. MacLochlainn also criticised the fact that
Grow, an organisation providing assistance to people
with mental health problems, was being forced to
scale down its operations due to inadequate HSE
funding.
"If the Minister is serious in her commitment then
she will ensure that there is no freeze in the
budget for the office and that it is increased
significantly for 2008 as part of the range of
essential measures to address this heartbreak in
Irish society," he added.
Meanwhile, the Minister of State at the Department
of Health and Children yesterday said there had been
"additional funding" provided in recent years to
tackling suicide in Ireland.
"The National Office for Suicide Prevention has an
annual budget of €4.5m but a number of other suicide
prevention initiatives are also delivered by the HSE
for which funding does not come within the suicide
prevention office’s budget," said Minister Jimmy
Devin.
"Some of these include funding for 11dedicated
resources officers, deliberate self-harm response
nurses in A&E departments and a wide range of
general psychiatric services in both acute hospital
and community settings."
He commended the "tremendous commitment and
dedication" of those involved with the many
statutory and voluntary organisations working to
preventing suicide throughout the country. |
