The chairman of the board of the Health Information and Quality Authority (Hiqa), Pat O’Mahony, has died, the organisation has announced.
Prof O’Mahony has served as chairman of the watchdog’s board since October 2018, having served on a number of public and private sector boards.
In a statement issued on Thursday afternoon, Hiqa said it is “with deep sadness and regret that we have to announce the sudden death of our beloved board chairman, Prof Pat O’Mahony”.
“Pat has served as the chair of Hiqa’s board for the past seven years and through his leadership, wisdom and humanity he has made a massive contribution to the development of Hiqa and the wider health and social care service,” the statement said.
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“Our thoughts are with Pat’s family at this time.”
Prof O’Mahony has had a long career in the health and regulatory sector, having also served as chairman of the Irish Medicines Verification Organisation since 2019, according to his LinkedIn page.
Prof O’Mahony is the former chief executive of Clinical Research Development Ireland, a partnership of academic institutions and clinical research facilities that aimed to translate biomedical research into improved diagnostics, therapies and devices for patients.
Having spent a number of years in private clinical practice and as technical manager in the pharmaceutical industry in Ireland and the UK, Prof O’Mahony worked in public health and was Director of Consumer Protection at the Food Safety Authority of Ireland.
He previously served as chairman of the management board of the European Medicines Agency, and was deputy secretary general and head of governance and performance at the Department of Health.
He was also formerly the chief executive of the Health Products Regulatory Authority, a position he held for 13 years, according to his LinkedIn.
In recent years, he has sat on a number of Government taskforces, including an expert advisory group on rapid testing, and a taskforce to support the expansion of the role of pharmacists.
