Ireland's six sexual assault treatment units (SATU) are to receive a funding boost of €500,000 this year, the Minister for Health has announced.

The units provide services to the victims of sexual assault 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. They aim to provide these services within three hours of first contact, however due to increasing demand, some victims have been left for longer periods or have had to travel great distances to access them.

Last year, there were 941 presentations to SATUs and there has been an average annual increase of around 11% in people presenting over the last four years.

The decision to provide additional funding follows the publication of a policy review of the SATU service.

According to Minister Simon Harris, this review, which is the first of its kind, ‘seeks to ensure a coordinated national health response to sexual assault'.

"I'm so proud that following an accelerated policy review led by my officials, we will be taking a major step forward in enhancing the service provided to patients and the supports provided to staff working in this difficult area," he commented.

He said that the additional €500,000 announced will go towards implementing 10 actions contained in the review, which include:
-Increasing and ring fencing the SATU budget by 25%
-Creating a national SATU service network, supported by a national management team
-Creating a rapid responder ‘on-call' rota so that forensic examiners can travel to support patients in their local unit
-Recognising the challenge of the working environment by introducing high-quality emotional supports for all staff
-Expanding the scope of service to include patient liaison and the coordination of medium-term aftercare for patients.

A dedicated joint Department of Health/HSE Review Implementation Team will be established immediately to implement these actions. It will report back to Minister Harris on its progress within six months.

According to Dr Maeve Eogan, SATU's national medical director, these actions ‘will support us better in ensuring we continue to provide a high-quality service to patients as close to home as possible'.

"Patients are always at the centre of our service and staff's minds and we continually strive to do our best for them. This has not always been an easy task due to staff shortages and increasing demands.

"We don't want anyone to need our service, but if they do, they can be assured that they will have the support of committed, compassionate and expert professionals in their nearest SATU," she said.

Support is available for victims of sexual assault from the Rape Crisis Centre. Its national 24-hour helpline offers a free and confidential support service for women and men who have been raped, sexually assaulted, sexually harassed or sexually abused at any time in their lives. Call 1800 77 88 88.

More information on the SATUs in Dublin, Mullingar, Waterford, Cork, Galway and Donegal is available here