Laois councillors cannot donate to SOSAD suicide charity in crisis

A Portlaoise councillor is urging the Minister for Health to intervene to save the SOSAD suicide prevention charity service.

Meanwhile Laois County Council has told councillors they cannot donate from their discretionary budgets to help out.

Save Our Sons and Daughters (SOSAD) has seven free counselling centres around Ireland, including one in Portlaoise that opened in 2021 after a huge local campaign to bring it to Laois.

Now the national charity is threatened with closing all seven doors to people in mental health crisis, because it is still awaiting its first ever funding support from the Health Service Executive (HSE). A week ago, they alerted that €42,000 of the €55,000 monthly running costs was needed within a week to stay open.

At the moment, a Laois Gofundme has brought in just over €11,000 of that.

Cllr Marie Tuohy from the Portlaoise Municipal District tabled a motion to Laois County Council's March meeting, asking the council to send notification to both the Minister for Health Jennifer Carroll McNeill and the Minister of State with responsibility for Mental Health Mary Butler, to "reach out without delay" to help SOSAD and get their Government colleagues to find money fast.

Portlaoise Municipal District Cllr Marie Tuohy

"This is a non profit charity offering free professional counselling to people with low mood, people who self harm, who have suicidal ideation, and who just need to talk.

"In Laois this year they have given 108 appointments, last year it was 44 by this stage, that indicates the demand. Suicidal ideation is not 9 to 5, it's 24 seven, with a helpline. SOSAD desperately needs Government to act urgently. This crisis is hopefully a one off until the HSE given funding.

"Their clients do not need referrals from GPs, but they are being suggested to go to SOSAD by people in psychiatic services. They are picking up the slack, lives are at risk, lives are being lost. 

"I spoke to a man who said it was his third time there, and he was told the minimum waiting time for HSE help was six weeks.  Mental health has always been the Cinderella of the Irish health service. The State and the HSE only pay it lip service. 

"Every intervention is critical, even lifesaving. This service is in crisis unless their funding application is fasttracked by the HSE. I ask my colleagues to highlight their plight, and help SOSAD," Cllr Tuohy said.

Cllr Caroline Dwane Stanley seconded the motion.

"This is a vital service for people in our community. It is the Cinderella of the health service. The fact that they are doing referrals and steering people there knowing full well they are not funding this service. Last year we gave funding to SOSAD, I hoped to do the same this years. We are now told in Municipal districts that we cannot fund this out of our discretionary budgets. If this is the case, could we go back to the drawing board?" Cllr Dwane Stanley said.

The council CEO Michael Rainey addressed the issue.

"We need to look at the way we are assigning discretionary funding. There is discretion but its in the framework of what rate payers pay for, under the functions of the council," he said.

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Other councillors also backed the motion.

"We need to start investing in mental health. We all know somebody suffering. Suicide is the biggest killer of men under 35," said Cllr Aisling Moran.

"the mental health service is overwhelmed for years. That's the reason SOSAD had to organise themselves. This great group came together to effectively do the job for the Government. It's important we support them as best we can. Unfortunately it's areally tough time for young people to be growing up, with social media pressure," Cllr Tommy Mulligan agreed. 

See the SOSAD GoFundMe account here.