THE HSE HAS said data on the total number of people presenting to emergency departments with a mental health crisis is not available.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Sinn F\u00e9in\u2019s David Cullinane had asked the HSE in a parliamentary question for the number of people admitted and referred to other services and the number who had left a hospital emergency department before being seen or discharged.<\/p>\n
However, the HSE has said the information is not available, and it only collects data on the number of patients presenting to hospital accident and emergency departments with self-harm and suicide-related ideation.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Criticising the lack of data, Cullinane said the HSE has made it clear that other mental health crisis presentations, such as psychosis, panic attacks or postpartum depression, are not included and cannot be inferred from their dataset.<\/p>\n
The HSE did state that hospital emergency departments \u201cprioritise and treat the most unwell patients and those with life-threatening illnesses first\u201d.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The HSE also outlines the emergency care pathway for people presenting in crisis, including triage, emergency medicine assessment, referral to specialist mental health services where appropriate, and a decision to admit or discharge with follow-up care.<\/p>\n
The HSE reported that 19,177 presentations to 24\/7 emergency departments involving self-harm or suicide-related ideation were recorded in 2024.<\/p>\n
Of those, 2,779 admissions were made to an approved mental health centre and 14,522 referrals were sent to other services following assessment.<\/p>\n
1,583 people presenting with suicide ideation left before assessment or before recommendations could be made, the HSE said.\u00a0\n<\/p>\n
Other mental health presentations other that self-harm<\/p>\n
However, Cullinane said the parliamentary reply he received reveals a \u201csignificant blind spot in how we measure mental health emergencies\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe HSE cannot provide full and comprehensive data on the number of people presenting to emergency departments in a mental health crisis, or on what happens to many of those patients once they present.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat we do know is deeply concerning. More than 19,000 presentations for self-harm and suicide-related ideation were recorded in 2024 and over 1,500 people left emergency departments before assessment or before recommendations could be made,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Without full and comprehensive national data, the Waterford TD said the government cannot properly plan services, identify where pressures exist, or measure whether people in crisis are getting the care they need.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe need better data collection, stronger community mental health services, and specialist crisis supports that reduce reliance on overcrowded emergency departments and ensure people receive timely, appropriate care,\u201d he added.\u00a0<\/p>\n