Question from Deputy Ken O'Flynn - PQ 14904-26

To ask the Minister for Health the total number of referrals made to Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services in 2023 to 2025 and to-date in 2025, nationally and by CHO area; the number and percentage of those referrals that were not accepted for service, nationally and by CHO area; whether suicidal ideation and/or self-harm risk are recorded as coded data fields within CAMHS referral systems; if so, the number of referrals not accepted where suicidal ideation and/or self-harm risk was indicated; if not, the way in which the HSE monitors safeguarding risks associated with referrals not accepted for service; whether a face to face or direct clinical assessment of the child is undertaken prior to a decision not to accept a referral; the written clinical governance and risk escalation protocols that apply when a referral is not accepted; and the alternative care pathway formally communicated to families and referring GPs in such cases.