He was speaking after the Department of Health confirmed that a pilot programme that has embedded mental health practitioners in the NIAS control room to deal with calls from patients suffering mental ill-health will only be funded until the end of the 2025 financial year.
According to NIAS, the pilot programme has resulted in 40% of mental health-related calls not needing to have an ambulance dispatched – significantly reducing pressure on ambulance provision and ensuring more patients with mental ill-health get the care they need instead of being brought to A&E.
The East Antrim MLA has said: “The work of these mental health specialists in the Ambulance Service control room has been game changing and it is imperative that the Health Minister finds the resources needed to ensure that work continues.
“At a time when our ambulance and emergency care services are facing unprecedented pressure, this pilot programme has been an amazing success at reducing some of that strain and ensuring more patients with mental-ill health get the help and support they need in community or other settings, rather than being brought to A&E, which isn't the most appropriate place for someone facing a mental health crisis.
“The Health Minister has been very clear about the budgetary pressure he is under, but using limited resources strategically in order to deliver better patient outcomes and reduce pressures elsewhere in the health system is exactly the type of project that should be prioritised. This programme is surely something we can’t afford to miss out on and I’d urge the minister to do all he can to ensure it is sustained.”