Mental Health Bill 2024: From the Seanad
Dail Éireann — 2026-04-29
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Mary Butler (FF), Waterford

These amendments delete subsection (c) in the definition of "relevant health professionals", which referred to "a registrant" within the meaning of section 3 of the Health and Social Care Professionals Act 2005. Following the Seanad Committee Stage debates, the Mental Health Commission wrote to me regarding this definition. The commission is responsible for drafting all of the rules in relation to the use of restrictive practices, as part of its regulatory function. The commission recently revised its rules in 2023 following an extensive consultation and the input of an expert group.
The commission strongly recommended that only a registered medical practitioner or a registered nurse should be considered an appropriate profession to order and supervise the use of a restrictive practice. The commission raised concerns that the list of professions would be expanded too much if professions included under section 3 of the Health and Social Care Act were included and I was happy to take the commission's advice on this.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2026-04-29/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-09-21T01:01:08+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-04-29