Press release
Ministers for Health establish the Public Health Reform Expert Advisory Group
From Department of Health
Published on
Last updated on
From Department of Health
Published on
Last updated on
Minister for Health, Stephen Donnelly, and Minister of State with responsibility for Public Health, Wellbeing and the National Drugs Strategy, Frank Feighan, today announced the establishment of a Public Health Reform Expert Advisory Group (EAG).
The Expert Group will initially focus on identifying learnings from the public health components of the response to the COVID-19 pandemic in Ireland with a view towards strengthening health protection generally and future public health pandemic preparedness specifically. The Expert Group will also identify lessons from international best practice regarding reform and strengthening of other core public health functions, including the promotion of health and wellbeing, population health research and health intelligence and health service improvement.
The Expert Group will then examine the key components of the existing delivery model(s) for public health in Ireland, with a view to recommending an appropriate operating model to develop and oversee the delivery of Public Health in Ireland into the future.
This multifaceted operating model will seek to ensure that whole-of-government and cross-agency arrangements are such as to ensure:
Minister Donnelly said:
"While Ireland continues to respond to the ongoing challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is important to learn lessons both from the Irish and international public health response to COVID-19. This can ensure the development of a fast, dynamic and agile, integrated and intelligence-led public health response to future health threats, while also ensuring that we have a fit for purpose model of public health which promotes and protects public health in its broadest sense and which makes best use of data and evidence."
Minister Feighan said:
"Our research has found that the COVID-19 pandemic has inspired us, as individuals, to become more health aware and eager to proactively maintain a healthy lifestyle. By identifying the key learnings from the past two years of this pandemic, both nationally and internationally, we can only strengthen our core health functions, including the promotion of health and wellbeing and our health services generally. I look forward to the findings of the EAG and how they can assist the delivery of Healthy Ireland’s objectives."
The Expert Group’s work will be progressed through the Chairpersonship of Professor Hugh Brady, President-designate of Imperial College London, current Vice-Chancellor and President of the University of Bristol and former President of University College Dublin.
Membership of the Expert Group is comprised of national and international experts with experience across a range of key domains, including: public health, health protection, epidemiology, senior public health service leadership, change management, & risk and evidence communication.
The Expert Group will produce a final report, which will be submitted to the Minister for Health by mid-2022. The Expert Group will hold its initial meeting in January 2022.
The Department of Health has implemented significant changes in public health in the last twelve months including:
The Expert Group will be independent and responsible for the organisation and direction of its work, with administrative support from the Department of Health.
Chair of the Expert Group, Professor Hugh Brady, has experience in several leadership roles across medical, academic, and public service fields, including as Chairman of the Health Research Board, and Chairman of the Universitas 21 Network of international research universities. He has also held leadership roles in important change initiatives, such as with the Irish Government’s National Innovation Taskforce in 2011 and on the oversight committee for Ireland’s National Innovation Fund.
Membership of the EAG is as follows:
| Name | Title/Role |
| Chair: Prof Hugh Brady | President-designate Imperial College London, Vice-Chancellor and President of the University of Bristol |
| Dr Helen Bevan | Chief Transformation Officer, NHS Horizons |
| Prof Hannah McGee | Deputy Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs, RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences |
| Prof Jaap T. Van Dissel | Director of the RIVM Centre for Infectious Disease Control, Netherlands |
| Prof Johan Giesecke | Professor Emeritus at the Karolinska Institute Medical University in Stockholm, Vice Chair of the Strategic and Technical Advisory Group for Infectious Hazards (WHO) |
| Prof Peter Piot | Handa Professor of Global Health, former Director of the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine & EU Chief Scientific Advisor on Epidemics |
| Prof Yvonne Doyle | Medical Director for Public Health (NHS), NHS England and NHS Improvement (NHSE&I) |
| Dr Tracey Cooper | Chief Executive Officer, Public Health Wales and former head of the Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA) |
| Dr Alexandra Freeman | Executive Director, Winton Centre for Risk & Evidence Communication |
| Prof Cecily Kelleher | College Principal, UCD College of Health and Agricultural Sciences |
| Prof Patricia Fitzpatrick | Full Professor of Epidemiology & Biomedical Statistics, and Head of Subject for Public Health at University College Dublin |
| Dr Sinéad Hanafin | Visiting Research Fellow, School of Nursing and Midwifery, Trinity College Dublin |
| Dr Tadhg Crowley | General Practitioner and Associate Clinical Professor, University College Dublin |