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Dáil Éireann - Volume 225 - 23 November, 1966 Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Psychiatric Treatment for Juveniles. Mr. Cluskey Mr. Cluskey 69. Mr. Cluskey asked the Minister for Justice if he is aware that there is no psychiatric unit for the treatment of juveniles in St. Patrick's Institution; and that in a recent court case the judge was compelled to commit a juvenile to Mountjoy jail because he could receive psychiatric treatment there which would not be available to him in St. Patrick's; and if he will take steps to set up a proper system of psychiatric treatment in St. Patrick's Institution. Mr. B. Lenihan Mr. B. Lenihan Mr. B. Lenihan: I am glad to say that the Deputy seems to have been misinformed about the position. 1425 A qualified psychiatrist is medical [1425] officer of both Mountjoy Prison and St. Patrick's Institution. He is assisted in his work in the Institution by three medical orderlies who have received training in both general and psychiatric nursing. In addition to the services provided within the Institution my Department have established a liaison between St. Patrick's and St. Brendan's Mental Hospital and the services of the Chief Psychiatrist there and his staff are available as required for consultation or to provide specialised treatment. Mr. Cluskey Mr. Cluskey Mr. Cluskey: Is the Minister aware that a judge stated in court that he was committing a 16 year old youth to Mountjoy because the psychiatric facilities were not available in St. Patrick's Institution to afford him the necessary treatment? Mr. B. Lenihan Mr. B. Lenihan Mr. B. Lenihan: Judges are human too. Mr. Cluskey Mr. Cluskey Mr. Cluskey: Is the Minister saying that the judge should not have acted in this way and has he taken any action to see that the boy was detained, rightly, in St. Patrick's and not in Mountjoy? Mr. B. Lenihan Mr. B. Lenihan Mr. B. Lenihan: All I can say is that every facility is available in every institution for treating cases as mentioned by the Deputy. Mr. Cluskey Mr. Cluskey Mr. Cluskey: Is the Minister for Justice stating that the youth was detained wrongfully in Mountjoy instead of the proper institution? Mr. B. Lenihan Mr. B. Lenihan Mr. B. Lenihan: I know the particular case concerned. I have looked into it and this particular youth got every psychiatric and medical aid necessary for his assistance. Mr. Cluskey Mr. Cluskey Mr. Cluskey: And where was he detained? Mr. B. Lenihan Mr. B. Lenihan Mr. B. Lenihan: That is an irrelevancy in this case. In fact, I do not think the Deputy is doing this particular person any good at all—— Mr. Cluskey Mr. Cluskey Mr. Cluskey: That one has been played out by the Minister for Justice; the Minister has pulled that three or four times here. Mr. B. Lenihan Mr. B. Lenihan 1426 [1426] Mr. B. Lenihan: ——and the Deputy is personally aware of a number of cases. Mr. Cluskey Mr. Cluskey Mr. Cluskey: It is a deplorable situation when a Minister for Justice—— Mr. B. Lenihan Mr. B. Lenihan Mr. B. Lenihan: Deputy Cluskey is well aware of what I am talking about. Dáil Éireann 225 Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. Psychiatric Treatment for Juveniles. Questions 19661123
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