Seven people with autism are staying at the Afalassa Psychiatric Hospital in Cyprus

Seven people with autism, two of them minors, are staying at the Afalassa Psychiatric Hospital in Nicosia. This was discussed at an expanded meeting of the parliamentary Health Committee, which examined the chronic problems facing psychiatric care in Cyprus.

Committee Chair Savia Orphanidou said that the hospital is housing people who should not be kept in a psychiatric inpatient facility at all. In addition to patients with autism, they include homeless people and people with eating disorders. The reason is the lack of protocols and community-based support structures, while the Afalassa environment itself is sensory-inappropriate for people with autism.

“Today we heard things that do not reflect well on Cyprus in 2026 when it comes to mental health,” Orphanidou said. She called for the law governing involuntary hospitalisation and community-based support structures to be amended by the end of the year, as well as for psychologists to be introduced in schools.

AKEL MP Marina Nicolaou spoke about years of underfunding and staff shortages: the hospital is operating at full capacity, wards are overcrowded, and there are not enough child psychiatrists. She called for immediate decisions on staff recruitment and for the completion of the next stages of renovation.

Police representative Nikos Loizidis described how law enforcement officers handle crisis cases without nurses: sometimes they have to use physical force, and the person is taken to hospital in a patrol car.

The committee demanded specific deadlines for the second and third phases of mental health centre development and for the launch of a 24-hour national support helpline, which is promised for the first quarter of 2027.