January 22, 2014
Samaritans take 33% more calls after Hayley death
Irish Examiner, 22-Jan-2014
Calls to the Samaritans increased by almost one third following the suicide of Coronation Street character Hayley Cropper The charity, which advised the producers on the storyline, had said Hayley's death from a drug? overdose could cause a risk of copycat suicides: On Monday night 10.6m viewers saw Hayley take an overdose after giving up her struggle with incurable cancer — 2m more than last Monday's episode.
State to pay most legal costs in right to die case
Irish Examiner, 22-Jan-2014
The State has agreed to orders that it will pay most of the substantial legal costs of the unsuccessful challenge by Marie Fleming to the law making it an offence to assist a suicide.The 59-year-old from Wicklow died last month eight months after losing her landmark right-to-die case.
3,100 asked for help from Pieta House last year
Lucan Echo, 16-Jan-2014
More than 3,100 people across Dublin presented at Pieta House for help in2013, The figures reveal that many thousands of people across the area sought help for different issues, including self-harm and suicidal ideation. The four Pieta House centres in Dublin all reported significant numbers of men and women seeking help throughout the year. The largest number attended Pieta House's main centre in Lucan with a total of 1,803 people showing up for appointments in 2013.
Mental health
Students spread Donal's message on wristbands
Evening Echo, 18-Jan-2014
Pupils at Carrigaline's Community School have sold 1,500 wristbands to promote positive mental health and raise awareness of suicide. The Young Social Innovators linked up with the Donal Walsh Foundation to play an active role in promoting mental health awareness.
Bringing Mental Health And Suicide Into The Open
Dungarvan Leader, 17-Jan-2014
Cllr Brazil is to host a Mental Health & Suicide Awareness Conference. Only by discussing Mental Health issues in an open and honest manner will the stigma surrounding suicide and mental illness finally be eradicated, prominent mental health campaigner and local county councillor Liam Brazil told the monthly meeting of Waterford County Council on Monday. Speaking in advance of a Mental Health & Suicide Awareness conference in the Park Hotel on January 31st and February 1st, Cllr Brazil said it is genuinely frightening to hear the on-going toll that suicide is taking in Irish society.
Mental Health Service
Call to axe bed closure plan after nurse attack
Irish Examiner, 21-Jan-2014
The Psychiatric Nurses' Association has called on the HSE to reverse a raft of proposed bed closures at mental health units in Cork after one of its members was attacked while on duty. The female nurse, who is in her mid 20s, was attacked, knocked to the ground, and kicked several times in the head
and face by a female patient in St Michael's Mental Health Unit based at the Mercy University Hospital in Cork
Admissions to mental health units plummet
Irish Independent Health & Living, 20-Jan-2014
The number of patients in psychiatric units and hospitals has dropped from 19,801 to 2,407 in the past 50 years, according to a new report. The findings are revealed in a new census carried out by the Health Research Board and they give an insight into social changes in the half-century since 1963.The 2013 census shows: • Men make up 55pc of patients in psychiatric units and hospitals. The gender breakdown of in-patients has not changed over the last 50 years. The fall amounts to a reduction of 88pc and shows the shift away from in-patient care to more community-based treatment for people with a psychiatric illness.
Therapy targets teens at risk of suicide
The Cork News, 17-Jan-2014
Pockets of the country with high rates of suicide are being targeted with a highly acclaimed therapy piloted in Cork. Principal psychology manager with Cork Mental Health services, Daniel Flynn is co-ordinating the national research and implementation programme for dialectical behaviour therapy (DBT), a treatment developed by Dr Marsha Linehan, a US-based internationally renowned psychologist.
