The Irish government has ordered the Health Service Executive (HSE) to produce reports on each individual case study featured in a recent RTÉ Investigates documentary series examining the state of psychiatric care in Ireland, according to a statement released by the Department of Health on Thursday.
The directive follows the broadcast of the RTÉ documentary, which revealed a crisis in mental health services, with a significant number of patients requiring psychiatric care currently being held in the prison system due to a lack of available beds in dedicated facilities. Figures released to RTÉ show that over 340 psychiatric patients are currently incarcerated in Irish prisons.
The situation has been exacerbated by delays in fully operationalizing the new Central Mental Hospital (CMH) in Portrane, north Dublin, which opened in late 2022 at a cost of almost €250 million. Despite the new facility, a record number of patients are currently awaiting admission from prisons, with 38 individuals deemed ill enough for the CMH still held in jail as of this week. This number surpasses the capacity of medical cells within the prison system to adequately care for acutely mentally ill and actively psychotic inmates.
The RTÉ Investigates report highlighted the experiences of families who have witnessed the deterioration of their loved ones’ mental health while incarcerated. Some families are seeking answers regarding the deaths of psychiatric patients who died in Cloverhill Prison over the past five years, raising concerns about the standard of care provided within the prison system.
The Irish Penal Reform Trust has described the reliance on prisons to house individuals in acute psychiatric distress as a consequence of chronic underfunding of mental healthcare services. The Journal.ie reported that the waiting list for admission to the CMH has reached its highest level since before the closure of the older facility in Dundrum, Dublin, in 2022.
The Department of Health has not yet indicated a timeframe for the completion of the HSE reports, nor have details been released regarding the scope of the investigations. The HSE has not responded to requests for comment on the specific cases highlighted in the RTÉ documentary.
