Nova Scotia's health minister says mental health services for young people are not in crisis.

Minister Karen Casey responded to NDP health critic Dave Wilson's comments Thursday about understaffing at the IWK Health Centre in Halifax.

Wilson said the hospital has at least 19 vacant positions in adolescent mental health care and said the government had failed to follow through on the 2006 Nunn Commission report, which recommended early intervention and mental health care for youth who are in trouble with the law.

Casey said, as far as she knows, no one who needs help is turned away.

She said her department has been working to meet the growing demand for services and has nearly doubled the budget for mental health since 2000.

"We're trying to keep our budget boosted to meet that demand," she said. The department has looked into adding beds and is co-operating with other district health authorities. If a patient needs to transfer, she said, "the DHA can provide some interim, short-term support for that patient while they're waiting to get into IWK."

Wilson blamed government policy and lack of foresight for the waiting lists and the problems faced by emotionally disturbed or mentally ill young people involved in criminal activity.

Pool of workers diminishing

Money is not the problem, according to Jocelyn Vine, vice-president of patient care at the IWK. Instead, there is a shortage of people to hire.

"There are fewer of the people who specialize in working with youth and children and so that again reduces the field of people that we can recruit from," Vine said.

She agreed that waiting lists are too long and any wait for treatment is a burden for those who live with mental illness and for their families, but said this is a national problem. Dealing with young people under court ordered treatment is a work in progress, she added.

"I think the deficit exists and we are really moving forward to ensuring as timely access as possible within the resources that we have," Vine said.