At least 1,000 new GPs required to maintain patient ratios, says representative group
Care of ageing population the greatest challenge facing the health service in next five years, says ICGP
Department of Health
News, analysis, and features about the Department of Health
Health Minister not ruling out extra hospital to solve HSE Mid West overcrowding
State’s health watchdog recommends three options for improving patient safety in the region
Why are women still treated as a statistical anomaly in health research?
I remember a doctor discussing the “challenging” recovery that follows a Caesarean, as though launching a human skull through the birth canal was mere lady stuff
Health service to get record €27.4bn for extra beds and 3,300 more staff
Chambers says there will be 220 additional acute beds but greater focus on productivity in health sector next year
Budget 2026: Tax cuts for developers of cost-rental apartments considered
Budget 2026: Measures geared towards boosting construction, but talks on childcare package go down to wire
Basic income support scheme for artists to be made permanent and opened to new entrants in budget
Negotiations down to the wire, with five big-spending departments yet to agree their budget allocations
Third-level student fees ‘to be cut by €500 permanently in Budget’
Another €12 weekly rise in core welfare payments in doubt as talks go down to wire
‘My children would be alive if I knew about my wife’s illness’
Bereaved call for changes to mental health patient confidentiality following killings
Almost 75% of Ireland’s radiation machines need to be replaced, group finds
Concerns about ‘substandard care’ as breakdown of older equipment interrupts treatment
The drivers of obesity that also come with climate impacts
Thinking in a Climate Emergency: ultraprocessed foods are a leading cause of rising rates of obesity
Children’s Health Ireland to be folded into HSE
Move follows months of controversy, notably relating to orthopaedic and spinal services
Jordan chosen as route to evacuate sick Gaza children to Ireland in ‘imminent’ operation
It is understood around 11 children have been identified for an upcoming third evacuation mission
Income thresholds for student grants could rise to €150,000 per household
Government considering proposal to reduce VAT rate on new apartments
How a car crash in Dublin 4 drove public-sector CEO salaries higher
Resignation of EirGrid chief has had downstream consequences for Government over top-level pay
Minister for Health briefed on Drogheda hospital concern weeks before patients
Patients advised of file reviews 11 weeks after HSE raised it with department, Labour’s Ged Nash says
State paid over €400m to private emergency accommodation providers in three months
McEnaney Group was paid €19 million for providing accommodation to refugees and homeless
New financial safeguards planned for national maternity hospital project
Government seeks to implement lessons learned from national children’s hospital construction
Minister for Health will not attend hospital consultants’ annual conference
Jennifer Carroll MacNeill’s meeting in March with the senior clinicians’ association was described as ‘tense’
Dr Pat O’Mahony obituary: Vet who played key role in rebuilding Ireland’s reputation as a safe food producer
Colleagues described him as an inspirational and visionary leader with a strong intellect
Pharmacy sector to receive additional €75m under new agreement with State
Pharmacists will be able to prescribe medication for a number of common conditions under agreement
Why is there an inquiry into the use of epilepsy drug sodium valproate?
Inquiry relates to historical licensing and use of drug for women of childbearing age
Doubts grow that planned State elective hospitals will be built before 2030s
Minister did not secure sufficient funding to pay for all key health projects, says Sinn Féin
Medicine pricing agreement coming to end with no talks yet sanctioned on successor deal
Pharmaceutical companies say they have little interest in any new agreement unless it can guarantee faster access for new drugs
Tributes paid as chairman of Hiqa board dies
Prof Pat O’Mahony had served on a number of public and private sector boards
More than 1,000 patient cases examined as part of review at Drogheda hospital
Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital is taking a look back at all histopathology slides seen by one consultant
New plan aims to improve diagnosis and care for people with rare diseases
Life-threatening or chronically debilitating diseases affect 300,000 people in Ireland
What impact will 2025 Leaving Cert results have on the CAO?
Leaving Cert grades still subject to an ongoing distorting effect
‘Significant decline’ in RSV-related illness in babies after high uptake of vaccine
Department of Health introduced new vaccination programme for babies last year
‘Once somebody shares the fact they are thinking about suicide, there’s a connection to life’
A €2 million investment in counselling supports for men aims to help break the silence around mental health
Family of girl (14) who died while at Gaeltacht seeks review of CHI care
Amelia Belle Ferguson (14) collapsed while out walking in Co Galway last year
More detailed data on abortions to be collected from Irish hospitals
No information on patient’s identity or reason for seeking abortion will be gathered
Inquiries under way into further allegations around waiting list initiatives at Children’s Health Ireland
Public Accounts Committee and Minister hears that consultant paid €40,000 in 2018 to treat patients on his waiting list at private hospital
Cocaine users are now older, better educated and more likely to be working
People accessing treatment for drug use are now older, better educated and more likely to be in employment
Abortion numbers rose to 10,852 in State in 2024
Majority were early pregnancy terminations, while 108 carried out due to fatal foetal abnormality
Government will not use Jordan to evacuate sick children from Gaza, despite previously saying route was ‘not an issue’
Doctors prefer Jordan crossing to Rafah due to higher quality of hospital in Amman
Ban on commercial sunbeds to reduce skin cancer to be explored by Government working group
Report finds sunbeds still being used by children and teenagers, despite regulations restricting use
Q&A: How are GP shortages affecting the country - and where are they hardest to find?
An uneven spread of doctors paints an unhealthy picture for many in rural areas
Why are Irish genetic tests still being sent to laboratories abroad?
Tests are often central to clinical decision-making, patient diagnosis and time-sensitive interventions
‘Simple and straightforward’: The €4,500 naming of the National Children’s Hospital Ireland
It could have been different, except that ‘Phoenix’ rose from the ashes only to be shot down by a healthcare facility in Arizona
Ireland’s STI clinics struggling to cater for increasing demand
Health strategy envisages free contraception for up to 55-year-olds and increased STI testing
‘I sleep easier here’: The makeshift homeless community under the M50
Rats and rubbish surround the camp at Finglas Road, but to some residents it’s better than other options
Hospital endoscopy procedures are increasingly being done at weekends
Health service trying to accommodate more patients outside traditional weekday hours
‘I have no rights to him’: mothers of children through surrogacy wait in legal limbo
Legislation and regulation are lagging behind for parents not currently recognised on birth certificates
Jennifer Carroll MacNeill in the spotlight as health controversies intensify
Fears rolling issues involving children’s hospital services and others could dominate the political agenda over the summer
Ireland’s grubby treatment of Covid-19 heroes will cause frontline workers to think twice next time
Nurses who contracted long Covid remain trapped in a post-pandemic freeze frame, battling extreme fatigue, brain fog, weakened immunity, headaches and pain
Beaumont Hospital has NTPF waiting list funding suspended over ‘potential financial irregularities’
Dublin hospital drawn into funding controversy as Crumlin children’s hospital identified as subject of prior concerns
I wrote the Leas Cross report. Two decades on, has anything changed in Irish nursing homes?
RTÉ documentary made clear that Hiqa cannot assure the public of appropriate and dignified care standards in nursing homes
Children’s health crisis will roll on until there is transparency about how public money is spent
There was a significant drop in the average number of patients seen per consultant last year, with ramifications for our long waiting lists
CHI funding from NTPF will resume imminently, says Department of Health
Payments were suspended for ‘insourcing’ at CHI on foot of internal report suggesting irregularities about scheme operation
Audit of CHI waiting lists ordered to ensure productivity in public hospitals, Minister for Health says
Move by Jennifer Carroll MacNeill comes amid controversy over alleged abuse of waiting lists at CHI
Revelations show appalling personal behaviour among some CHI medics
Toll on medics training under certain consultants was especially acute
Always running for office: Barry Heneghan praises northsiders’ athletic superiority
Plus: Old Belvedere Squash Club up the creek without a padel; a Freedom of Information request deemed ‘frivolous or vexatious’; and a chance to test yourself against Dublin’s finest sprinter, Callie the cheetah
Up to 6,800 more inpatient beds will be needed by 2040, says ESRI report
Ireland’s ageing and increasing population will mean greater capacity requirements in public hospitals over next 15 years
Crosswords & Puzzles
Crosswords & puzzles to keep you challenged and entertained
Stardust
Inquests into the nightclub fire that led to the deaths of 48 people
Common Ground
How does a post-Brexit world shape the identity and relationship of these islands
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