IDA welcomes launch of new mental health support programme

IDA welcomes launch of new mental health support programme

(02 Sep 2015)

The Irish Dental Association has welcomed the launch of a new mental health support programme for dentists, doctors and pharmacists.

Under the programme, any doctor, dentist or pharmacist who has a concern about a mental health or a substance misuse problem can receive confidential help from experts at Practitioner Health Matters.

The Practitioner Health Matters Programme has been designed to reflect international best practice in practitioner health and aims to strike a balance between supporting practitioners confidentially and patient safety.

An independent charitable organisation, the PHMP has the support of the representative and training bodies for the medical, dental and pharmacy professions as well as the three professional regulatory bodies. 

Like the general public, 1 in 4 practitioners may have mental health difficulties at some point in their lives. With alcohol or drug related problems the rates in the general population are around 10 -15% we may find similar rates amongst doctors, dentists and pharmacists.

Dr Íde Delargy, the Clinical Lead for the new Programme, said there is clearly a need out there as health professionals are very slow to come forward to declare that they may have a mental health or alcohol or drug related problems. She said health practitioners were often reluctant to come forward because the people they needed to approach were very often their peers and this was a potential barrier to treatment.

“The key to overcoming this reluctance is to ensure that they will receive a high standard of care in a nonjudgmental atmosphere and with complete confidentiality assured. We want people affected by these issues to seek help early and to know they can come forward safely and in confidence to have their health needs met.”

“We have a memorandum of understanding with each of the regulators so they recognize the work that we’re doing and support it but they’re not involved. This arm’s length relationship is very important if we are to encourage more health practitioners to contact us and access the support they may need. We won’t refer anyone to the Regulators unless they are not willing to comply with the treatment programme and/or are putting patients at risk”

“Generally speaking practitioners who access a service from a designated programme like this do extremely well and about 80% recover and return to working well” she said.

International evidence would indicate that some practitioners are at higher risk than others. Dr Delargy said “while practitioners in their middle years are still the cohort most commonly affected there was increasing evidence that younger practitioners at an earlier stage in their careers are starting to present more frequently in such programmes”.

Mr Hugh Kane, the Chairperson of the PHMP said that “This is clearly an important service for practitioners. Often the person experiencing difficulties is the last person to realize they need help. That is why we are raising awareness around these issues and we would encourage colleagues, family and friends to watch out for everything from subtle warning signs to the more obvious ones. Discussing these issues with someone in difficulty can be extremely challenging but they can also be lifesaving. Early intervention is key.  Ignoring problems, as we often did in the past, benefits no one” he said.

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