A specialist eating disorder treatment hub due to open in Dublin has been delayed.
It comes just a week after it was confirmed that progress on another treatment unit has also been held up.
A government plan from 2018 envisaged opening 16 specialist eating disorder treatment hubs across the country.
But years later, just 3 are operating.
One was meant to open in Dublin’s Mount Carmel this year, but it has been pushed back to 2022.
And it has now been confirmed that a separate hub for the north Dublin area has also been delayed, now not opening until the third quarter of next year.
Awful. Ireland's eating disorder treatment services delayed yet again.
Government promise was clear: the new Dublin treatment hub would open by end of 2021.
This delay will result in 6 more months (at least) of suffering for so many people. https://t.co/BfhUJJ84w8— Paul O'Donoghue (@paulodonoghue93) December 2, 2021
Not Good Enough
Social Democrats TD Holly Cairns says this isn’t good enough.
“It's very disappointing news and unfortunately it's unsurprising. “
“This kind of delay and absence of action altogether in relation to eating disorders is standard practice for this government, and it seems the previous one.”
Life Saving Treatment
CEO of Mental Health Reform Fiona Coyle says the delays have a massive impact on those suffering.
“We had been standing people to the UK and elsewhere to receive critical and often maybe lifesaving treatment.”
“It's just really important that the treatment is available.”
The HSE says recruitment of staff for the treatment hubs is at an advanced stage, and has allocated more funds to open other units.
