€107,500 awarded to two teens following treatment by Camhs

Two children allegedly prescribed an antipsychotic drug during treatment by South Kerry Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (Camhs) have settled High Court actions.

In addition to the compensation in each case, an “uplift” was added by the mediator reviewing the cases. This was done with regard for the way each boy and their families were treated by South Kerry Camhs.

Ms Justice Emily Egan approved the settlements against the HSE presented to the court by the boys’ legal team, Michael Sutton SC instructed by solicitor Dan O’Connor.

The settlements included an award of €77,500 to a 16-year-old boy and €30,000 to a 13-year old boy.

In the first case, the now-16-yearold was referred to Camhs when he was five. The following year he was diagnosed with ADHD.

It was claimed the boy was inappropriately placed on Risperidone, an antipsychotic drug, in October 2019. He took the drug for 14 months.

It was further claimed no rationale for this treatment was given to his parents. The boy frequently fell asleep at school and gained weight.

Mediator Hugh Mohan SC, in his determination, said the boy is entitled to €70,000 compensation. He added that there must also be an uplift because of how the boy was “treated throughout the system”.

“Instead of being monitored and overseen, he and his family were poorly treated, with their concerns nottakenseriously,”MrMohansaid.

The mediator noted that “the system” did engage with the boy through other doctors from 2020, leaving him in an improved state. He therefore considered €7,500 to be a reasonable uplift, bringing the final settlement figure to €77,500.

In the second case, the now 13-year-old was referred to Camhs four years ago and was diagnosed with ADHD.

In his determination, Mr Mohan said it seems the boy was unnecessarily exposed to a dose of Risperidone for eight months. He noted that the boy’s parents suffered significant distress and the nontreatment of the boy’s ADHD symptoms caused more difficulties for him at school and at home.

Assessing compensation at €25,000, Mr Mohan said there must be an uplift. He stated that the boy and his family were “poorly treated and their concerns not taken seriously”.

Mr Mohan noted the boy is now in a much-improved situation. He assessed the uplift at €5,000, bringing the total award to €30,000.

A state compensation scheme was set up in 2022 after the controversy over care provided by South Kerry Camhs came to light.