Of interest from media
Dr Mary Kelly, Consultant Psychiatrist in Intellectual Disability and Dr Maria Dunne, Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist, this week wrote to The Irish Times to highlight the continuing closure of respite and day services for people with intellectual disabilities during the COVID-19 pandemic. Unable to access these vital programmes, and without their normal routines and social […]
A recent report from The Times features the testimony of several women seeking inpatient treatment for eating disorders, only to be told that they did not meet the admission criteria for high-risk patients. The report also featured Consultant General Adult Psychiatrist Dr Caroline Maher, who explained the current model of care for those suffering from […]
Higher Specialist Trainee in Psychiatry, Dr Rosie Plunkett speaks to Sarina Bellissimo to tackle the stigma surrounding anti-depressant medication. The discussion covers when it might be appropriate to speak with a GP, the different types of anti-depressants that may be prescribed, and why stigma around these medications might exist. Read snippets from their discussion below, […]
Following a highly critical report from The Council of Europe’s Committee for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, the Irish Prison Service released a statement on Tuesday, 24 November saying it accepts there is an “urgent need to enhance and improve the level of service provided and the response to […]
Consultant Psychiatrist, Dr Miriam Kennedy speaks with the Sunday Independent about how the uncertainty of COVID and the stress of “Lockdown 2.0” has created a crisis in mental health, with services now busier than ever. Dr Kennedy, Consultant Psychiatrist in General Adult/Old Age Psychiatry with Highfield Healthcare, details the increases she is seeing in her […]
Dr Michelle Clifford, Chair of the College Eating Disorders special interest group and national clinical lead for the HSE programme for eating disorders, speaks with The Times about the lack of specialist support for people suffering from eating disorders, the “postcode lottery” involved in accessing care, and what proper funding for the service would mean […]
Violence risk assessments are sometimes used to inform decisions around the involuntary admission of people to hospital. Yet the evidence for their use is at best unclear, say Gautam Gulati, Chair of the CPsychI Faculty of Forensic Psychiatry, Colum P Dunne, and Brendan D Kelly. This blog post originally appeared in The BMJ Opinion. The […]
RTÉ’s Drivetime speaks to psychiatrists and patient advocates about mental wellbeing during the pandemic. The interviews coincide with a conference on the topic as part of a series of online seminars hosted by St John of God Research Foundations. Listen back to the full piece on RTÉ Radio 1 here. The theme of this year’s […]
New research suggests that people who have survived COVID-19 are at increased risk of psychiatric disorders than people who have had other illnesses. Read the full article in the RTÉ here. You can also read the original research here. New research suggests people who have survived Covid-19 are at greater risk of psychiatric disorders than […]
Dr Muiris Houston writes for the Irish Times about how patients with a recent diagnosis of a mental illness have a seven-fold increased risk of COVID-19 infection. This makes a recent mental health diagnosis one of the strongest risk factors for the novel disease. Women with mental illness are also more at risk of COVID-19 […]