Harney orders rape services funding review

An urgent review of funding for services to victims of sexual violence has been ordered by the Minister for Health, Mary Harney.

Speaking at the publication yesterday of the first national statistics from the Rape Crisis Centres (RCCs), the Minister said: "I have asked the Health Service Executive to urgently examine the optimum service requirements for victims of rape, in respect of both medical treatment and counselling services, with a view to bringing forward proposals for future service needs."

She said she wanted to "make sure we have the appropriate level of funding" and that it was an issue on which she "really" wanted to make an impact.

At the publication of the report, What Survivors Told Us, the Rape Crisis Network of Ireland (RCNI) said demands on its services were increasing all the time but its services were seriously underfunded.

Fiona Neary, executive director of the RCNI, said it was without a doubt "that the severe underfunding of RCCs costs the Irish taxpayer much more money".

The statistics underlined this. "A woman who is raped has a 50 to 90 per cent chance of developing post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms," said Ms Neary.

"Without access to immediate expert care and support, a survivor experiencing these invasive symptoms is likely to make both extensive and long-term demands on primary care and mental health resources."

Describing sexual violence as "extensive, pervasive and ongoing" in its effects, she said responding to the trauma necessitated a "skilled, multifaceted response". Funding arrangements were ad hoc and unpredictable year-to-year, and the sector had "experienced an effective cap since 2002". This funding crisis "must be addressed in 2005", she said.

She added the fact that just 20.4 per cent of victims reported the assault to the Garda was partly due to the lack of sufficient counselling and supports to equip victims face the legal process.

The report gives particular space to three areas about which the RCNI has grave concerns in terms of service accessibility. These areas are: people with disabilities, teenagers and Travellers.

Some 4.4 per cent of those who used RCC services last year had a disability. Of these, 46.8 per cent had a learning disability, 42.6 per cent a mobility disability and 10.6 per cent were deaf. There were clear problems with disclosure and the capacity of RCC staff to adequately meet their needs. For example, no RCC counsellor has sign language, says the report.

The report says studies find 20 per cent of women and 16 per cent of men who sustained contact sexual abuse did so when under the age of 17.

"RCCs remain deeply concerned at the lack of resources, supports and programmes specifically targeting the 12-to-18-year age group regarding sexual violence, healthy relationships and positive sexuality."

On Travellers, the report notes that while the community makes up 0.6 per cent of the population, they account for one per cent of RCC clients. Many Travellers, fear the RCNI, are not telling anyone when assaulted and so are suffering alone.

There is reason to believe the one per cent figure may be a real undercount, as "many Irish Travellers do not use rape crisis services", says the report. The RCNI calls for "innovative partnership approaches with Traveller organisations to address the understandable reluctance to disclose".