More than 2,000 children and young people are on waiting lists for appointments in Ireland's mental health system.
The man whose job it is to head up the HSE department in the area is warning there is a limit to how far he "can stretch it before it snaps".
In an Irish Times interview Martin Rogan said young people's mental health services are coming under increasing strain.
However he said they are heading in the right direction, with extra staff being drafted in, and resources being reworked to cover areas that need it.