Delivering Sláintecare Reform

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.

Minutes of the Board's meetings are available here.

Sláintecare 2025+ aims to forge the way towards accessible, affordable, high-quality, healthcare for the people of Ireland when they need it, where they need it.

Improving access to healthcare services and social care services, improving service quality for patients and service users and increasing capacity of the health and social care system is the priority of Sláintecare 2025+, underpinned by a range of enabling reforms. The overriding goal of Sláintecare 2025+ is to improve health and social care services in Ireland, to optimise patient outcomes and be responsive to their needs.

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.