A new community suicide assessment crisis team could relieve pressure on emergency department in Limerick

SIX new suicide crisis assessment nurse teams are going to be hired for primary care settings. 

The new teams will be in Limerick, Kerry, Galway, Kildare and Dublin South City, while a team for children and young people is being appointed to Linn Dara Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services. 

The Linn Dara service serves young people in West Dublin, Kildare, and West Wicklow.

The teams will have two senior mental health nurses. 

These can act as a safety net for people in suicidal crisis, as the team can provide rapid, specialist assessment in a primary care setting for people who feel suicidal and have presented to their GP.  

It will also relieve pressure on emergency departments. 

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Minister for Mental Health, Mary Butler TD, announced the appointments as part of Budget 2026 and it follows the announcement that 300 more mental health staff will be recruited this year. 

Mental health funding will reach a record €1.6 billion in 2026, marking the sixth consecutive annual increase and a 50% rise since 2020.

Within this record allocation, €15 million in additional funding has been secured specifically for crisis supports and suicide prevention. 

Minister Butler said: “The expansion of the Suicide Crisis Assessment Nurse service with six new teams is a priority initiative under Budget 2026, bringing the total number of teams to 21 across 18 counties. 

“These new teams will strengthen community‑based crisis supports, improve access to specialist assessment, and provide faster, more coordinated care for individuals in suicidal crisis.”

Minister Butler added: “I am deeply committed to ensuring people in mental health crisis can access the supports that they need, in an appropriate location closer to their home, to support our work in continuing to reduce suicide.”

She stressed that the development of these services within the community will move crisis responses into the community and away from busy acute environments.