This page is a summary of what we have achieved since the pandemic began. It includes research, the voices of people with mental health difficulties, and our engagement with Government in our bid to #ResourceRebuildReform Ireland’s mental health services, as we emerge from the pandemic.
A list of mental health supports and services during COVID-19 can be found here.
Attitudes Towards Mental Health Services During the COVID-19 Pandemic
Mental Health Reform collaborated with the COVID-19 Psychological Research Consortium (C19PRC) to explore public attitudes towards the mental health services during the COVID-19 pandemic. The C19PRC is a group of mental health researchers from Ireland and the United Kingdom who are conducting projects in both countries to understand the mental health effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.
This is a brief summary of a peer-reviewed study carried out by C19PRC researchers in Maynooth University, in collaboration with Mental Health Reform, and published in January 2022.
Mental Health and COVID-19: The Opportunity to Resource, Rebuild and Reform Ireland's Mental Health System
This policy brief provides an overview of what we have learned about how the COVID-19 pandemic, impacts the mental health of the people of Ireland. We used the document to communicate our asks to the government, on how to place mental health at the core of COVID-19 recovery plans.
Access our infographic 1 pager and read the full report by clicking the buttons below.
eMental Health
This report presents results of a survey on usage of digital tools (apps and remote consultation) to support physical and mental health and wellbeing. The survey took place at the end of May 2020, during the period since the first COVID-19 restrictions began.
Respondents were from a large market research panel comprising mainly young adults (and mainly students) in the core third level student age range (18-24). Read the full report by clicking this link.
Need for a rapid briefing in the context of the COVID-19 crisis. The COVID-19 crisis has direct mental health implications in a number of ways, and also creates some major organisational, operational and logistical challenges for the various players in the Irish ecosystem of providers of mental health services and supports.
Click on this link to read the Rapid Briefing Document.
This second briefing was prepared as a follow-up to the eMEN international seminar on ‘eMental health: Opportunities for the Third Sector?’ held in Dublin on 18th February, 2020. The third sector plays an important role in the Irish ecosystem of mental health service and supports, and is also an important source of innovation in development and utilization of eMental health.
Click on this link to read the briefing document.
Opening Statement to the Oireachtas Committee on Health, 24 May 2021
This is the Opening Statement that we made to government on 24 May, 2021.
The virus has brought about anxiety in the general population, while public health restrictions have brought isolation and loneliness. Our personal networks and formal support systems were wiped away.
The pandemic has demonstrated how physical and mental health are inextricably linked to one other and to our wellbeing. Read the full statement by clicking the button below.
Responding to the Mental Health Impact of COVID-19
Public views on the government’s response and insight from lived experience.
Mental Health Reform collaborated with COVID-19 Psychological Research Consortium (C19PRC) on the second wave of this survey by designing questions specifically aimed at people who use the mental health services in Ireland, as well as questions examining the attitudes of the general population towards the government’s response to the mental health impact of the pandemic.
Coalition Conversations
During our Coalition Conversations series, we connected with experts across the mental health sector and facilitates discussions on important topics during this unprecedented time.
The aim of this webinar series is to provide a space to explore the impacts of COVID-19 on the mental health sector and the new context we now find ourselves in. Full episodes are available to play back at any time.
The Impact of COVID-19 on Mental Health Reform's Coalition Members
The pandemic has presented significant challenges to the mental health services and
non-governmental organisations working in the mental health sector.
As the leading coalition on mental health in Ireland, Mental Health Reform is well placed to
provide unique insight into the challenges faced by the sector during this crisis.
Submission to the Special Committee on COVID-19 Response
The impact of COVID-19 on mental health in Ireland July 2020.
It is imperative that mental health is a central part of the Government response to the COVID-19 pandemic, and that our services have the capacity to cope with the additional strain they are now under and will continue to be under into the future.
Read our submission by clicking the button below.
Women’s Mental Health Must be Priority in COVID-19 Recovery
For many women the pandemic has meant an increase in stress and anxiety and has adversely affected their mental health and wellbeing.
Launching a joint statement with detailed recommendations today, the National Women’s Council and Mental Health Reform have called on the Government to ensure women’s experiences and mental health needs are at the centre of our response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
