Message from our Chief Executive, Angela Fitzgerald

Welcome to the latest edition of our newsletter. 

As a regulator, we are committed to continuous learning and improvement, and we welcome every opportunity to review and strengthen our regulatory approach. By doing so we can ensure that we are responding not only to sectoral or policy changes, but we are also challenging ourselves to maintain our focus on what really matters to those using health and social services.

Pictured above are HIQA Chief Executive Angela Fitzgerald and HIQA Chairperson Martin O’Halloran at the launch of our annual report this month.

Our 2025 Annual Report sets out the work that we carried out last year to achieve better outcomes in health and social care services for all people in Ireland.

This report is the first published under our Corporate Plan 2025-2027, and highlights the impact of our work. Speaking about the report, HIQA Chief Executive Angela Fitzgerald said that “2025 was a year of continued progress for HIQA as we worked to support improvements in the quality and safety of health and social care services across Ireland.”

HIQA Chairperson, Martin O’Halloran, said: “I am honoured to lead HIQA as its fourth Chairperson at what is a critical time for the organisation, as we continue to take on new functions informed by emerging national and EU regulation, policy and priorities.”

Independent review into regulatory processes in nursing homes published

We published an independent review of our regulatory process for nursing homes earlier this month, which found that our Chief Inspector of Social Services’ approach to regulation is effective, consistent and aligned with our statutory powers. 

The review identified opportunities to further strengthen our regulatory process and also highlighted the need for regulatory reform to reflect the changing nursing home sector, including measures that would allow parent companies and nursing home groups to be held more directly accountable. We welcome the findings and have already started work to make sure that we fully implement the recommendations as part of our ongoing work to support safe, effective and high-quality care for people living in nursing homes.

We also published 54 inspection reports on our findings in nursing homes operated by the Emies Ireland nursing home group, along with an overview report which reflects a comprehensive programme of inspections across the nursing homes in that group.

HIQA publishes new evidence to inform Ireland’s low-risk alcohol guidelines

We have published two new reports providing important evidence on the health impacts of alcohol consumption.

The findings from our research, which was requested by the Department of Health, show a strong link between alcohol use and poorer health outcomes. Between 2022 and 2024, alcohol was associated with an average of 1,420 deaths and more than 27,000 hospital admissions each year in Ireland. Overall, we found that the more alcohol people drink, the higher their risk of death, hospitalisation and losing years of life. 

Our research also found that some level of risk exists even at lower levels of drinking, which suggests that current guidelines may not fully reflect the risks. Our findings show a clear link between increased alcohol consumption and poorer health outcomes and will help ensure updated guidelines give people clearer information to make informed choices about their health.

Help shape the future of residential disability services

We are inviting people to tell us their views to help inform our updated National Standards for Residential Services for Disabled People.

We are updating the standards so that they reflect modern legislation, stronger human rights and more person-centred care. The revised standards place a clear focus on achieving positive outcomes for people using services.

Our Director of Health Information and Standards, Rachel Flynn, is encouraging people to take part in the consultation: “We want to hear from people who use services, their families, carers, staff and the wider public. All feedback received will contribute towards informing the final standards, helping to ensure they reflect real experiences and support better outcomes for people.”

The consultation closes at 5pm on Friday 17 July.

Tell us your views on the COVID-19 vaccine

We are seeking feedback from people on our draft health technology assessment (HTA) of the COVID-19 vaccination in Ireland. This HTA will inform advice to the Minister for Health and the HSE on which population groups should be eligible for publicly-funded COVID-19 vaccinations from the 2027-28 vaccination campaign onwards. 

Our research has found that the vaccination remains safe and effective while also noting that the virus continues to have the greatest impact on older adults and other vulnerable groups. We welcome the views of the public, healthcare professionals and other stakeholders on our draft findings.

The consultation closes on Sunday 9 August.

Your hospital stay matters: share your experiences to improve services

People who spent time as inpatients in a public hospital during the month of May are being invited to take part in Ireland’s seventh National Inpatient Experience Survey. 

Taking place across 40 public hospitals, the survey asks patients to share their experiences of care from admission and treatment to communication and discharge. The feedback received plays an important role in highlighting what is working well and where improvements are needed. Since 2017, more than 66,000 people have taken part, with their insights helping to shape real changes in hospital care at both local and national level.

The survey is key to understanding what matters most to patients and supporting ongoing improvements in hospital care for all. It is run by the National Care Experience Programme, a joint initiative between HIQA, the Health Service Executive, the Mental Health Commission and the Department of Health.

New national catalogue to unlock the power of health data 

We are developing a new National Health Dataset Catalogue, a key resource that will make it easier to find and use health data across Ireland. 

The National Catalogue will bring together information on health datasets into one central, easy-to-use resource to help support better decision-making, policy development, research and innovation across the health system. The project builds on our existing work in maintaining a national dataset catalogue and will standardise how data is described and shared.

The National Catalogue is being developed under the HealthData@IE project, led by the Department of Health in collaboration with HIQA and the Health Research Board, with funding from the European Union. The project supports Ireland’s readiness for the European Health Data Space, an EU-wide programme designed to enable better use of health data for care, policy-making, health planning, research, innovation and cross-border collaboration across member states.

Pictured above are OPW’s Head of Energy Conservation David Jeffers and Senior Engineer Paul Tighe presenting our Facilities Officer Pat Conway with the award.

We were delighted to receive an Energy Efficiency Impact Award at the Office of Public Works (OPW) Optimising Power @Work awards ceremony in May. The award recognised our work in areas such as energy reduction, creativity and sustained engagement. Our low out-of-hours energy use, efficient building systems and well-managed controls were also all highlighted by the OPW. 

We have been working with the OPW and the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland since 2011 to reduce our energy consumption, improve our energy efficiency and reduce our emissions and we look forward to building on this success as we work to achieve our 2030 targets.

Providing evidence to support informed health policy decision-making

In recent weeks, our health technology assessment (HTA) and evidence synthesis work has continued to support informed policy decisions, helping to shape the future of health services in Ireland.

We published a review of publicly funded services for donor-assisted human reproduction across 10 countries, providing valuable insights to inform the development of policy in Ireland. The review found that most countries offer at least some level of public funding for these services, helping to reduce financial barriers for individuals and couples seeking treatment.

We also published research exploring whether the shingles vaccination may be linked to lower dementia risk, contributing to growing international evidence in this area. Our review found that some research suggests people who receive the shingles vaccine may have a lower rate of dementia, though the evidence is not clear-cut. The findings highlight the need for further research in the area and will inform future work to support evidence‑based public health decisions.

Together, these projects demonstrate how HIQA’s work supports decision-makers by providing robust, independent evidence, helping to ensure policies are effective, sustainable and focused on achieving the best possible outcomes for people using health services.