The Mental Health Commission (MHC) has published individual reports into the provision of child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS) in each of the nine community healthcare organisations (CHOs) of the HSE.
The nine CHO reports have already informed a final report into CAMHS by the Inspector of Mental Health Services, Dr Susan Finnerty, which was published by the MHC at the end of July 2023.
On their own, each report provides an overview of the strengths within each CHO CAMHS service, the challenges they face, the quality improvements and initiatives they have put in place, and any areas of concern identified by the Inspector and her team.
As part of the overall review, the Inspector and her team met with the area management teams, each of the CAMHS community teams, and reviewed clinical files in each team within each CHO. The Inspector and her team also spoke with families and young people who availed of the services, and other stakeholders.
The Inspector’s overall independent review into CAMHS, which she commenced in April 2022 – and included the publication of an interim report in January 2023 – was published on 26 July 2023, complete with 49 recommendations for the State.
Due to the seriousness of the concerns raised by the review, the Inspector recommended that a comprehensive strategy for CAMHS and all other mental health services for children be prepared; that the implementation of the report recommendations must be monitored by the MHC; and that CAMHS should be immediately and independently regulated by the MHC.
The reports are available here: https://www.mhcirl.ie/news/mental-health-commission-publishes-9-individual-cho-reports-child-and-adolescent-mental-health
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