Social workers warn mental health strategy lacks substance

Social workers warn mental health strategy lacks substance

The Irish Association of Social Workers (IASW) has claimed that the recently-launched strategy on mental health lacks real substance.

“While a refreshed mental health policy is to be welcomed, the fact that the oversight group who developed the policy did not include any core health and social care professional members of mental health multidisciplinary teams is hugely disappointing,” the group said in a statement.

Core level

“Overall, Sharing the Vision is an aspirational document that is short on specifics. It lacks tangible numbers or benchmarks to aim for.

“This will make it extremely difficult to argue for a core level of services, as a core level is not specified.

“A Vision for Change (2006) at least had specific targets, and while they may not have all been met, it will be impossible to meet unspecified targets. A lack of referral pathways leads to the absence of needs identification. This is particularly concerning given the weak commitments to diversify governance,” the body said.