The Department of Health and the HSE are working together to deliver the Sláintecare vision to put people at the centre of the health system. Working towards universal healthcare for all, Sláintecare reform is creating a health and social care service where people can access the right services, closer to home, and based on need and not ability to pay.
With a focus on developing primary and community care, Sláintecare reform is making it possible for people to stay healthy in their homes and communities for as long as possible.
The Department of Health is driving the Sláintecare reform programme and working with the HSE to transform health and social care services - ensuring that the right care is delivered in the right place and at the right time.
The Sláintecare Programme Board was established in 2021 to drive the principles of Sláintecare reform throughout the health and social care service. The Sláintecare Programme Board is co-chaired by the Secretary-General of the Department and the Chief Executive Officer of the HSE, and reports to the Minister for Health. The Programme Board also comprises of senior members of the department’s Management Board and the HSE’s Executive Management Teams.
The Sláintecare Implementation Strategy and Action Plan 2021-2023, approved by Government in May 2021, set out the priorities and actions for the next phase of the reform programme. The Strategy was developed factoring in the learnings from COVID-19, the new context within which the health system operates, the Programme for Government and engagement with key stakeholders and partners and was underpinned by the eight Sláintecare Principles from the original Oireachtas Sláintecare Report. The Strategic Action Plan is also grounded in key reform strategies, policies and initiatives.
The 2021 end of year report details the progress made against the priorities and actions detailed in the 2021-2023 Strategy and Action Plan and focuses on two reform programmes:
- Reform Programme 1: Improving Safe, Timely Access to Care and Promoting Health & Wellbeing; and
- Reform Programme 2: Addressing Health Inequalities — towards Universal Healthcare
Outlined below are some of the highlights delivered in 2021:
The Oireachtas Committee on the Future of Healthcare was established to devise cross-party agreement on a single, long-term vision for health and social care and the direction of health policy in Ireland. The committee produced the Sláintecare Report, which was adopted by the government and published in May 2017. This report identified the following fundamental Sláintecare principles:
In response to the Sláintecare Report, the government approved the Sláintecare Implementation Strategy on 17 July 2018.
Since then, Sláintecare progress has been captured in a number of published progress reports.
The Sláintecare Implementation Strategy has also been reviewed and refined, culminating in the latest Sláintecare Implementation Strategy & Action Plan 2021-2023.