Concerns over mental health care as ‘outgrown’ psychiatric unit left off new LUH plan

The Department of Psychiatry at Letterkenny University Hospital is not included in a new development control plan for the facility.

The news comes at a time when the psychiatric unit has “outgrown” the facility and an absence of adequate data in relation to wait times being experienced for mental health services in Donegal has been criticised.

At a Regional Health Forum West meeting this week, Councillor Ciaran Brogan asked for an update on a provision to develop a “new, modern and enhanced” department of psychiatry as part of the plan..

“The current facility has outgrown its current capacity and accommodation,” the Fianna Fail Councillor said.

The HSE say that a new capital programme oversight board, which is responsible for the delivery of the new development control plan, has been established and a design team has begun to work on the plan.

It is expected that the plan will be finalised in early 2026 and will include ambulatory, oncology and a surgical hub. 

While the department of psychiatry is not currently included in the health planning process, a response issued to Councillor Brogan by the HSE said that the service is currently assessing the need for capital investment in line with the strategic healthcare infrastructure framework.

“We all know that the psychiatric unit in the hospital has outgrown the facility,” Councillor Brogan said. “I am sure that people on the ground know full well the challenges that are there. It is a very busy unit and it is important that it is involved in the development control plan.”

The Integrated Healthcare Area Manager for Donegal, Dermot Monaghan, said the building, which was put in place around 20 years ago, has not adapted itself in terms of the changes in how mental health services, particularly the acute services, are delivered.

“We hope to get it on the capital plan sometime in the next two to three years and we will look to take the best models in the country and the world and apply them to the services there to make sure that it meets the needs of people for the next 25 years.”

Meanwhile, Milford-based Independent councillor Declan Meehan was told that data to show the wait times for all allied health professionals to psychiatry, including OT, CBT, physiotherapy, psychology in the area is not collected or collated.

Councillor Meehan also asked to be provided with the percentage of patients referred to these specialities who are being seen within the target timeframe.

However, he was told that the data will be collected following the implementation of a regional wide patient administration system.

“That is not acceptable,” Councillor Meehan said. “If we can’t frame the problem with data, then we don’t know what the problem is.

“This needs to be audited so we can see how long people are waiting for. Either we are taking mental health seriously or we are not.

“We need to see what the blockages are.”

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Councillor Meehan said that he has heard from patients, consultants and GPs about long wait times for referrals.

Ann Cosgrove, the Interim CEO of the Saolta University Health Care Group, said that the collection of such data will require the roll out of the patient administration system. She said that getting residential areas on the system is the immediate priority and there was no time frame on when the system will become fully operational.