‘Watershed’ mental health bill discussed
RIVERSIDE PARK THE VENUE FOR MENTAL HEALTH REFORM MEETING
A SMALL group of mental health activists from a variety of different backgrounds and organisations gathered at The Riverside Park Hotel last week to discuss proposed changes to the Mental Health Act of 2001 which may prove to be a watershed moment for how we view mental healthcare in this country.
The event was hosted by Mental Health Reform Ireland and saw representatives from the likes of the Samaritans, Grow, Shine, The Men’s Shed Association and other mental health activists in attendance. Also present was Fianna Fáil spokesperson for mental health James Browne who has worked tirelessly to bring the Mental Health Amendment No. 2 Bill to this stage.
The bill seeks to make changes which strengthen the rights of people when they are in hospital to receive mental health care. It aims to introduce a new definition of a ‘voluntary patient’ and replace the existing principle of ‘best interests’ which often seems to give the views of the doctor priority over the views of the patient. It also examines how children are treated in terms of mental health.
Kate Mitchell of Mental Health Reform told the assembled meeting that 165 independent recommendations for changes to the Mental Health Act were made by an expert group and, so far, only one has been implemented. She said that the government has ‘consistently failed to meet its own deadlines’ on the matter and that the current Act is not in line with international human rights.
Deputy James Browne said that while progress was slow, it was being made.
‘Recently we’ve had four debates on mental health over six days in the Dáil,’ he said. ‘That may not seem like a lot, but compared with 20 years ago, it’s a significant improvement. I would like to see the topic discussed every week.’
He said that the Bill has received significant support from all quarters, including from new Taoiseach Leo Varadkar. Deputy Browne added that it was hopefully a positive sign that new Minister for Mental Health Jim Daly has agreed to an urgent meeting with Wexford TDs regarding the provision of mental healthcare in Waterford. He continued that while this Bill doesn’t come close to solving the problems of mental healthcare provision in Ireland, it’s a significant step in the right direction.
‘This doesn’t come close to covering everything that needs to be changed from the 2001 Act,’ he said. ‘We’re focusing on the human rights element. The government or the HSE cannot shoot this down. It’s a start and we need to put maximum pressure on the government to bring this forward.’
Service user and mental health activist Anne Foley really brought home what the changes would mean to people receiving mental healthcare in Ireland with an impassioned speech on her experiences.
‘I was in St Senan’s,’ she said. ‘Between 1996 and 1999 my mental health took a nosedive. I was just given more and more meds. They called me the zombie. I was emotionless, motionless… I just sat in a chair. It was horrible. I didn’t receive best practice. At one stage, I ended up putting my fist through a window in sheer frustration. I was grabbed by a male nurse and brought to a padded cell. He lay on top of me until another nurse could give me an injection. That was best practice at the time.’
‘Then we had the first Vision for Change from ’96 to 2006,’ she continued. ‘But here we are 11 years on and we’re still trying to sort it. I don’t know why this isn’t on the political spectrum. For me, best practice is for me to have a say in MY treatment. If I had cancer, I would have a say in whether or not to have chemotherapy. I’m a patient of mental health services for the last 18 years. I know what works for me.’
Anne also raised the issue of continuity of care and how psychiatrists assigned to her constantly change, leaving her to have to tell her story over and over again, a source of frustration for many mental health service users and something which was also raised by fellow local mental health advocate Collette Nolan who also told stories of patients presenting with acute mental health problems being sent home from hospital at 4 a.m. and another patient having to convince a doctor over a period of two weeks to give her the medication she needed to get well.
‘The Bill is good, but there’s a long way to go,’ said Collette, and that seemed to reflect the attitude of everyone in the room, who are viewing it as a small step on the road to a major overhaul of how we approach mental health in Ireland.