'We urgently need the HSE to intervene and support children with mental health issues'

NOELLE FINEGAN

Local Meath charities are having to turn away families looking for support for children who are experiencing mental health difficulties due to a perfect storm of increasing numbers seeking the services and a lack of government funding.

This is according to Justyna Doherty, Trim FRC Coordinator, who explained: “With wait lists in state services which are failing to cope with higher demand, many families reach out to community-based services offering low-cost options across Meath. While adults have seen an increase in awareness and better treatment options, children's services have not experienced similar improvements. The challenges within the state Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service (CAMHS) are a testament to this issue.

“In Meath, several Family Support Services have been diligently providing affordable counselling and play therapy for children. In January 2020, Meath Springboard Family Support Service expanded its counselling services for children and thanks to public donations through the RTE Toy Show Appeal, the service managed to support 334 children from July 2021 to December 2023, who were dealing with issues such as anxiety, exposure to domestic abuse, and homelessness.

“In addition, funding from Tusla and Meath Wellness Hub was allocated to support children through Family Resource Centres in Bettystown, Kells and Trim in 2023. Yet, this year, Meath Springboard, like other local organisations that had been previously granted the funding, did not succeed in securing further funding.”

Since January, Meath Springboard has received 66 referrals for child counselling support, with 22 children now on a waiting list as the service searches for alternative funding.

Service manager Sé Fulham said: “Health needs are best addressed through early intervention. It's intolerable, unjust, and wrong to ask a seven-year-old victim of domestic abuse to wait indefinitely for play therapy while we seek funding.”

He added: “We urgently need the HSE to intervene and support community-based services for children with mild to moderate mental health needs, which means providing funding now.

“Community based therapeutic supports are accessed by those for whom private services are usually not a realistic option and who might be deemed as low risk by state services meaning they are put on long waiting lists.”

Justyna Doherty said: “It feels like we are constantly battling for therapeutic funding so families and children can access the supports locally when needed, and not in two years’ time when the state services have capacity to meet them.

“Each family experience unique circumstances but what they have in common is a sense of overwhelm with not being able to help their children. That helplessness impacts negatively on the rest of the family then who are struggling with daily routines, attending after school activities or having family days out. Families come forward to seek help but we have to stop taking their details as we know that with currently allocated funding, they will not be seen this year. It is devastating and it happens every week”.

Between January and June of this year, a total of 41 children and young people accessed one to one therapeutic supports in Trim FRC, while 19 children are on the list and are waiting to be seen in the second part of 2024.

Apart from one to one supports, the group therapeutic programmes are also provided when funding is available such as the Thrive Programme to a group of youths, women and parents in 2023 in East Coast FRC or the Confident Me Programme for young people aged 8 – 12 in Trim FRC and Kells FRC thanks to funding secured by Meath Springboard.

Dearbhail Gibney, Play Therapist based in Trim FRC, describes play therapy as a type of therapy where children are facilitated to explore, express and recover from difficult feelings and experiences.

She explained: “Parents are also supported to understand and manage children's behaviours. Play therapy benefits the whole family. Having a low cost option for families, makes this vital service accessible to all”.

One of the children aged eight who availed of 10-week play therapy said: “It was good and really fun. I liked making things with clay and playing with the toys. It helped me work out why I was feeling sad and left out some times and what to do if I was feeling very angry. I would feel sad, play and not feel so bad after”.

Similarly, the parent described it as a very positive experience: “Attending play therapy really helped my eight-year old son. Although getting on well in lessons and surrounded by pals, his self-esteem was really low and he always seemed frustrated, angry and sad. His separation anxiety going into school broke my heart for him and try as I might I couldn't make things better. His little voice always seemed so full of self-doubt and he always felt alone and worthless in his peer groups.

“It took me a long time and encouragement to sign him up but he has now learned lifelong skills that will help him along the way. I had put so much time and effort into seeking advice and trying to do it on my own but there is no way I could achieve the same outcome.”