12. Deputy Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire asked the Minister for Health the number of people in the south Lee area awaiting paediatric and juvenile primary care psychology; the number waiting over six months, 12 months and two years; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [17839/26]

Sentiment score: 0.20

Primary care psychology for adolescents is a huge issue. I am concerned that sometimes it slips under the radar. This service provides important support, but, unfortunately, from my experience in replies to previous questions, the numbers on the waiting list in south Lee are significant, including over a year for some people.

Sentiment score: 0.25

Can the Minister clarify the figure of 198? How many weeks is that in excess of? It was the figure right at the start of the answer.

Sentiment score: 0.00

The Deputy gave a number of 198 people waiting over a certain number of weeks. I did not catch how many weeks it was.

Sentiment score: 0.20

That is a huge number. It is maybe a slight improvement, but very comparable to what was there before. This time last year about 70% of the posts in primary care psychology were absent. That is not in the reply and I am sure the Minister will not have those numbers in front of her. Part of the problem here is that there is a gap in recruitment. My big concern in relation to primary care psychology is us not making the investment there. The threshold to get into CAMHS now is so high because of the pressure it is under. Therefore, people who are at a relatively high level of suicidal ideation, as well as people dealing with things like ADHD, are not being seen quickly enough and their condition is therefore escalating. The other concern I have, potentially, is with people ageing out, that is, people who reach 18 without having been seen.

Sentiment score: 0.12

It is vitally important that we make this early intervention. The nature of primary care is that people are not triaged. It is very much a question of how long people are on the waiting list. CAMHS can triage people according to severity. The nature of primary care is, of course, that one comes in and is waiting the time one is waiting. That is all. All that time somebody's condition can be escalating. That can cause behavioural issues in school, an increase in the severity of suicidality and issues in terms of anxiety escalating. All of these problems escalate if we cannot address that. It sounds from what the Minister is saying that many of the vacant posts which existed a year ago still exist. That is a concern. I make the point, and I have made it before, that one of the concerns I have, in terms of getting people into psychology, is that to try to reach the point of being able to do clinical psychology, one has to get experience. That is a barrier to people from low-income backgrounds. One has to be able to gain that experience and not everyone is able to get a paid position that provides clinical experience. I am concerned about people who are not seen and who have been on the waiting list for a year or whatever. When they turn 18 years of age, they are the back of the queue for adult primary care psychology.

Sentiment score: 0.13