Child (10) attends A&E as a result of substance abuse

A child a young as 10 years presented at the Emergency Department of Cavan General Hospital last year with symptoms of psychosis as a result of substance abuse, The Anglo-Celt has learned.

The revelation was but one shocking detail contained in replies from the HSE after this newspaper sought details on admissions across counties Cavan and Monaghan presenting with issues arising from drug or alcohol abuse.
Along with the 10-year-old from County Monaghan, the youngest case admitted from County Cavan in 2015 was aged 12 years.
In 2016, up to the end of August, the youngest case to present with similar issues to Cavan General from across the region was 14 years old.

'Unsurprising’
Tim Murphy, project coordinator at the Cavan and Monaghan Drugs and Alcohol Awareness Service says, while alarmed by the aged of some of those presenting, said it is “unsurprising” given the local charity’s ever-increasing workload involving younger clients.
Ahead of the release of the group’s annual report later this month, Mr Murphy told The Anglo-Celt: “In terms of synthetic cannabinoids, we are providing support to a number of young people who stopped using in recent months and in the process of trying to help them towards recovery. The age ranges of those admitted for drug induced psychosis is worrying, but sadly unsurprising.”
Up to August 25 this year, across both counties, 56 people have been admitted to Cavan General suffering from substance misuse induced psychosis, causing the patient to suffer a severe mental disorder and lose contact with external reality. More than half, 32 of those cases presented from Co Cavan, 17 in Co Monaghan, and three admitted had addresses located outside of the region.

Alcohol most common
The biggest issues identified in 2016 to date have been alcohol, accounting for almost half of all cases; while 15 of the total 55 cases were related to opioids misuse. Opioids includes illegal drugs such a heroin, but also some across-the-counter drugs.
Mr Murphy says his charity support service is now beginning to receive worrying reports of new drugs being used, particularly stimulants and once-legal headshop products such as 'snowblow’ being misused with drastic consequences. He said: “One of the main concerns we had was that these new drugs were finding their way into comparatively young hands. There seemed to be a perception that they were no more problematic than cannabis and young people were moving from experimentation into dependence very quickly.”
If trends continues as they have until the end of the year, case numbers look set to match if not surpass last year’s levels.
Last year CDA alone reported receiving more than 30 referrals for synthetic cannabis use, 13 of which were in the Co Cavan service. Of that, seven were aged under the age of 16 and five under the age of 18 years. At least nine of those individuals who contacted CDA also reported trying to access acute psychiatric support services.

Greater resources needed
Advocating for better resources and specific services geared towards young people, Mr Murphy says its “high time” the 'A Vision For Change’ national mental health policy was reviewed.
“I would also like to see a reviewed national policy on emergency mental health presentations, particularly for those presenting with suicidal ideation. Those presenting as suicidal are usually under the influence of at least one substance. If mental health assessments are not immediately possible because of the presence of substances, I would suggest that these people should be more frequently admitted for a period of assessment, particularly when they themselves or the family are asking for it,” he told the Celt.
As for the new national drug strategy, he voices his disappointment that false dawns have come and gone over the past 15 years with little promised being implemented to their fullest potential.
“In Cavan and Monaghan we are still falling well short of accepted international standards in essential treatment services. According to a 2016 EMCDDA report, Ireland was third in the EU for drug-related deaths and we have new worrying trends in the spread of injected drug related HIV emerging in the scientific literature. We need to see alternatives to methadone, fully resourced drug clinics and needle exchange services, and better services for young people,” he said.