A FUNDING allocation of €3m has been announced to support mental health research projects being undertaken in Ireland.
The cash, confirmed by Ireland’s Mental Health Minister Mary Butler today, will fund ten different research projects.
These are set to “progress understanding of mental health in areas such as: youth mental health, ADHD in adults, women’s mental health and loneliness in older people” the Minister’s department confirmed.
A grant of €1m will establish a new all-island ‘Collaborative Research Network’ in mental health which will be led by Maynooth University, in partnership with the University of Galway, and the National Suicide Research Foundation at University College Cork.
Mental Health Minister Mary Butler announced the funding todayThe remaining €2m grant will fund the ten individual research projects.
“This significant investment marks a major step forward in how we understand and respond to mental health needs in Ireland,” Minister Butler said.
“Dedicated funding for mental health research has tripled since 2022, reflecting our strong commitment to evidence-based policy and innovation,” she added.
“The new all-island Collaborative Research Network will transform how research is coordinated, build research capacity, embed lived experience within research projects, and ensure research findings are translated into real-world impact,” the minister explained.
“The ten funded research projects will make a tangible difference whether it’s reducing waiting times for young people through single-session intervention approaches or exploring how GPs can play a greater role in supporting adults with ADHD,” she added.
“The insights generated from these projects will help us build a more responsive, inclusive, and effective mental health service for everyone."
James Lawless, who is Ireland’s Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science, said “research and informed analysis brings multiple benefits to solving societal challenges such as in the mental health arena”.
“I am delighted to see Maynooth University again leading out on this critical initiative and continuing to develop their health faculty and expertise, following the successful launch of their new School of Nursing last year,” he added.
“Breakthroughs often emerge from unexpected inquiries and leading-edge research recognises and supports that.
“Right across the programme for government we recognise the value of research and its application to public health.
“This funding demonstrates the whole of government response around mental health and our continued spearheading of scientific excellence to inform policy interventions across government.”
Health Research Board CEO, Gráinne Gorman welcomed the government’s commitment “to advance mental health research”.
“This recent investment demonstrates the power of co-production and collaboration in driving research that improves mental health and wellbeing, especially among priority and underserved populations, across the island of Ireland,” she added.
The ten new studies being funded through this grant are:
Improving the Mental Health and Wellbeing of Priority Population Groups: An Evaluation of the Act Belong Commit Mental Health Promotion Initiative in Community Settings – Prof Margaret Barry (University of Galway) & Dr Aisling Sheehan (Health Service Executive)
Project ACCESS (Advancing Care through Single-Session Therapy): Examining the Implementation of Timely Youth Mental Health Interventions in Jigsaw Ireland – Dr Amanda Fitzgerald (University College Dublin) & Dr Jeff Moore (Jigsaw – The National Centre for Youth Mental Health)
Exploring Experiences and Co-producing Supports to Promote Mental Wellbeing and Improve Access to Mental Health Services for Children with Physical Disabilities in Ireland - Dr Jennifer Ryan (RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences) & Mr Michael Walsh (Central Remedial Clinic)
Improving Outcomes for Children in Care – Prof David Hevey (Trinity College Dublin) & Mr Robert O’Connor (Tusla Child and Family Agency)
Designing an Integrated Women’s Mental Health Service: Enhancing Quality and Integration of Women’s Mental Healthcare – Dr Anne Doherty (University College Dublin) & Dr Richard Duffy (The Rotunda Hospital)
Enabling General Practitioners to Develop an Extended Role in Adult ADHD Diagnosis and Management in Primary Care – Prof Emma Wallace (University College Cork) & Dr Aoife O'Sullivan (Irish College of General Practitioners)
SMILE MS: Supporting Mental Health by Improving the Lives and Emotional Wellbeing of People with Multiple Sclerosis – Dr Rebecca Maguire (Maynooth University) & Ms Mary McCusker (Multiple Sclerosis Society of Ireland)
Understanding and Addressing Mental Health, Loneliness and Quality of Life in Older People Living with HIV in Ireland: A Pathway to Social Prescribing – Dr Louise Brennan (Trinity College Dublin) & Professor David Robinson (St James’s Hospital Dublin)
Shifting the Paradigm - Empowering Paramedic Educators to Better Support Practitioner Mental Health, through an Evidence-Based, Scaffolded Teaching Faculty Curriculum – Dr Michelle O’Toole (RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences) & Mr Brendan Cawley (Pre-Hospital Emergency Care Council)
Integrating Smoking Cessation Interventions into Mental Health Services: National Survey, Guideline Development and Pilot Service Evaluation – Prof Brian O’Donoghue (University College Dublin) & Professor John Lyne (Newcastle Hospital Greystones)
