Maternity advocates are calling for innovative approaches to provide psychiatric care for mothers and babies, as plans for a dedicated inpatient unit remain stalled eight years after being recommended.
The Department of Health confirmed that only a feasibility study has been completed for the proposed psychiatric unit, which would allow mothers and babies to be admitted together. The HSE is currently reviewing the study’s findings regarding location, with St Vincent’s Hospital campus in Dublin under consideration alongside plans for a new maternity hospital.
Krysia Lynch, chair of the Association for Improvements in the Maternity Service Ireland, criticized the prolonged delays and urged creative thinking rather than waiting for construction to begin. She initially advocated for three mother and baby units across the country – in Dublin, the northwest, and southwest – to serve women nationwide.
Lynch proposed alternative solutions, including developing standard operating procedures that would allow maternity units to temporarily convert rooms into psychiatric wards when needed. She suggested deploying specialized teams to existing units rather than transporting vulnerable women across the country.
“We’re waiting for the one big centralised, perfect thing to be built, but nothing is coming,” Lynch said, emphasizing that a Dublin-based unit would not help women from Kerry or Donegal.
Dr Mas Mahady Mohamad from University Maternity Hospital Limerick’s perinatal mental health services echoed these concerns, stating that multiple units are needed to serve patients across Ireland. The lack of these facilities poses significant challenges for women with severe mental illnesses during the perinatal period.
Mental Health Minister Mary Butler has committed to doubling multidisciplinary perinatal mental health teams over five years and increasing specialized midwife positions, though advocates argue immediate creative solutions are needed while infrastructure develops.