Text Resize : Despite the fact that mental ill-health is the most common health condition on the island affecting every fourth citizen it has long been considered as the Cinderella service within the health services, North and South.
In both jurisdictions there is clear evidence that the costs of failing to address mental health issues are farreaching, impacting on the quality of life of individuals and families, their physical health and capacity to make effective use of health services, their employment and productivity and the general economic capital of the entire community.
The hidden costs of mental health treatment have a significant impact on public finances: it has been estimated that the cost of depression, one the most common mental health conditions, through lost working days is 23 times higher than the costs to the health services.
The current proportion of total public health expenditure devoted to mental health care, 6% in the South and 8.4% in the North, is significantly lower than the equivalent budgets in England (12%) and Scotland (18%).
Common to both jurisdictions was the need for a new vision for mental health.
Within a six month period officials on both sides of the border initiated separate but comparable reviews of mental health policy.
Both Ireland and Northern Ireland have now adopted policies which advocate for person-centred, seamless communitybased services, informed by the views of service users and their carers, making early intervention a key priority and protecting and promoting people’s mental health. In each jurisdiction the strategic direction and accompanying operational priorities will take at least a decade to realise and will have major financial and human resource implications.
This report sets out the context, challenges, and approach to the transformation of mental health services and related research on the island of Ireland. It compares the two main mental health policy documents (Bamford Review in the North and the A Vision for Change document in the South) to identify similarities and differences in policy approach across the border highlighting areas of common concern, joint priorities for research and gaps which exist.
Mental health research is carried out by universities, think tanks, research institutes, private companies and other consortia. An estimated 80% of publicly funded research in the Republic of Ireland takes place in the universities, and 57% in the UK. It also examines the academic research interests and outputs across the island which is available to inform mental health services policy.
3.8 MB [Opens in New Window]Publication Type:
Report
Sector:
Health / Mental Health
Commissioned by:
