Our national mental health policy Sharing the Vision 2020-2030 builds on well-established cross-sectoral links to develop a range of mental health supports to ensure timely and appropriate care in an appropriate setting. This includes improving interlinkages between the specialist HSE National Forensic Mental Health Service (NFMHS) and the judicial system.
It is acknowledged that demand for forensic mental health services has grown in recent years, particularly in the last five years. This includes demand for inpatient beds at the Central Mental Hospital (CMH) at Portrane. The HSE actively manages the CMH waiting list for admission and works closely with the Irish Prison Service to prioritise access for those with the greatest clinical need.
The new National Forensic Mental Health Service (NFMHS) 170-bed complex at Portrane includes a new 130-bed CMH, a 30-bed Intensive Care Rehabilitation Unit (ICRU) and a 10-bed forensic Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service Unit. The CMH relocated to its new state-of-the-art purpose-built health facility in November 2022, transferring 93 patients to the new NFMHS campus. It was always intended that the new facility at Portrane would become operational on a phased basis.
At present, there are 114 operational beds in the CMH, which represents a 20% increase in bed capacity compared to the old hospital in Dundrum.
I secured €2.1 million under Budget 2025 to recruit the staff necessary to open the remaining beds in the CMH, thus ensuring continuity of care for patients there. In addition, I allocated €2.8m in new funding under Budget 2026 for an additional 30 Whole Time Equivalent (WTE) posts to open the first phase of 10 beds in the new ICRU. Opening these beds, will allow patients to be moved more efficiently through the various levels of high-quality supports offered at Portrane, which will in turn allow for further admissions across the wider NFMHS.
When these 10 ICRU beds come on stream towards the end of this year, they will bring the total number of operational beds on the NFMHS campus to 140. This represents an increase of 45 beds or 47% when compared to Dundrum. The new funding provided this year will bring the total NFMHS staff complement to approximately 580 WTEs.
While the Department of Health and the HSE fully appreciates the increasing demands on the prison service, it is important to stress that the NFMHS campus in Portrane is a specialist tertiary healthcare facility. This facility is approved for the purposes of the Mental Health Act 2001 and the Criminal Law (Insanity) Act 2006. Every effort will continue to be made by the health sector to help address acknowledged waiting list pressures to access the NFMHS overall, including on-going recruitment of specialist health professionals.
I will continue to work closely with the HSE to ensure that all aspects of our mental health care programme are improved over this year and beyond to develop capacity in the system to meet future demand. This includes consideration under Estimates 2027 to open the remaining beds at Portrane.
As this is a service matter, I have asked the HSE to respond to the deputy directly, as soon as possible.
