A STUDY into the mental health of the Irish in a London borough has found they have the higher psychiatric admission rate of an group. Irish women particularly over represented, with the admission rate of 40 per 100,000.
The study was undertaken on behalf of the Muintearas, an Irish mental health group in Haringey, north London.
It found that Irish psychiatric admissions were concentrated in the 25 to 44 age group and were almost double for women in this group.
Irish people had the highest "rates for depressions and alcohol abuse and second highest rates for schizophrenia.
The study found that Irish in patients were significantly more likely than all other groups to be living alone, in supported housing or homeless. The majority admitted for depression had attempted suicide.
Muintearas was formed in Haringey in 1994 to provide a forum for "the discussion and resolution" of issues around mental health and the Irish community. This study was funded by Mental Health Services, London Borough of Haringey and Enfield and Haringey Family Health Services Authority.
"The study evolved from a concern raised by previous studies on ethnicity and mental health which showed that the Irish suffer high levels of mental distress," said Ms Paddy Walls.
Ms Walls, a sociologist, who is carrying out a similar study in Glasgow, said there had not been enough research done on the Irish in Britain.
"The research previously done usually shows high mortality rates, high rate of accidents, lung cancer and suicide. We were interested in the health of the second generation and from what we found, it seemed to be as bad as the first.
"Obviously there are social and material reasons. Some of the people I spoke to were in dire social circumstances. The issues are really to do with the way the Irish migrate on their own. If things go wrong they tend to be isolated. If you look at Asian people they migrate as a family and have that support system," she said.