Primary care psychology waiting lists
Marie Sherlock highlights severe primary care psychology waiting lists and delays in registering qualified practitioners; the Taoiseach supports faster recognition and engagement with CORU and professional bodies.
Primary care psychology waiting lists are now up to a staggering 28,000. The figure for those waiting over a year is up to 16,000. In some parts of Dublin, children are waiting 13 years to be seen. That is not a waiting list; it is a non-existent service. My question is on recruitment. When we raise this issue, the Government throws its hands in the air and says the health service cannot get staff. That is not factually correct. There are applications in the Department of Health from those who have practised and trained in the UK and then moved home to Ireland. They are waiting months for a response from the Department. There are issues with regard to the 60-day training period that those who trained abroad are required to complete here. Will that 60-day period be waived or the practice of the person concerned restricted? We need to ensure that psychologists who want to practise in this country can be allowed to train. There have been reductions in child and adolescent mental health services, CAMHS, and primary care.
Comment on this
The situation is unacceptable. I agree with the Deputy's approach in respect of the professional bodies and CORU. People who are trained in the UK or across Europe should be accelerated. The Minister has had an engagement with CORU in respect of therapies and the professional bodies. The professional bodies also need to look in a realistic way at the thresholds, so it should not need a PhD-based qualification to deal with the primary care scenario. Master's degree levels should be sufficient in my view. This is something on which the Minister is going to engage with the professional bodies, including the Psychological Society of Ireland and others. Historically, there has tended to be a protectionist strain within professional bodies more generally, and that is something that we need to address. I hope I am wrong on that but that is my perception. Some of the inexplicable delays for people who are well qualified and have operated in similar environments are not acceptable, given the scale of the waiting lists that we have.