HIQA - Health Information and Quality Authority

Today, our Deputy Director, Dr Niamh O’Rourke, took part in a group discussion at the European Social Network Members Forum in Warsaw, Poland on ‘Addressing Challenges in Long Term Care – Ensuring Quality’. Niamh outlined some of the challenges to long-term care in Ireland and how we are developing new national standards for home support services, which will enable people to live in their own homes for longer. HIQA is a proud member of the European Social Network (ESN). The forum, held every four years, brings together ESN members and EU decision-makers to discuss the future of social services in Europe.  We were delighted to share our learning and knowledge of this area to help contribute to future developments in long-term care in Europe. To find out more about our national standards and their development, visit our website here: https://lnkd.in/eppc25q3

We are hiring a Senior Security Infrastructure Engineer to join our Information Division. The successful candidate will be responsible with maintaining the safety and security of the organisation's systems and network database. They will also play a key role in transitioning on-premises services to cloud-based technologies. Learn more and apply below. #jobfairy #werehiring 

The National Immunisation Advisory Council (NIAC) has today officially come under our remit, meaning that NIAC’s work is now a statutory function of HIQA. The move to HIQA from the Royal College of Physicians recognises the critical role NIAC plays as a National Immunisation Technical Advisory Group (NITAG) in supporting safe and effective evidence-informed immunisation policies. NIAC will continue to deliver independent recommendations and advice to the Minister for Health, develop the National Immunisation Guidelines for Ireland and advocate for best immunisation practices in Ireland. NIAC will also continue to work alongside a network of international organisations, benefiting from peer-to-peer learning and collaboration at a global level. Find out more about the work of NIAC here: https://lnkd.in/e2-BJ2BJ

Changes to the regulations which support #NursingHome residents and ensure better governance have come into effect. These regulatory changes strengthen the requirements in a number of areas such as governance and management, residents’ rights, risk management, infection control and shorter timelines for nursing homes to notify HIQA’s Chief Inspector of Social Services of key events to improve the safety and welfare of residents. This represents the most extensive update to the regulations since we started regulating nursing homes in 2009. We welcome the enhanced protections that the regulatory changes being introduced today will provide for residents. The regulatory changes have been introduced by the Department of Health - Ireland following recommendations proposed by the COVID-19 Nursing Homes Expert Panel and engagement with us and other key stakeholders. In recent weeks, we have engaged with nursing home providers and managers through webinars and meetings to inform them of the changes. For more information, see https://lnkd.in/epPZW4gD 

This week, we met with representatives from the Dublin and South East health region at Tipperary University Hospital to discuss the findings of the 2024 National Inpatient Experience Survey. During the meeting, hospitals across the region told us about their quality improvement initiatives and actions they have put in place in response to patient feedback to the 2024 survey. Our sincere thanks to our hosts Maura Grogan, Quality Manager and Ailish Delaney, Interim Hospital Manager at Tipperary University Hospital. The initiatives included themes such as promoting patient partner involvement in quality improvement, information provision with a renewed focus on health literacy, and mechanisms to promoting patient feedback. Our Director, Rachel Flynn, and Deputy Director, Tracy O’Carroll, were joined by regional and hospital quality and patient safety managers and representatives, as well as patient partner representatives at the event. Huge thanks also go to QPS representatives from across the region who presented on quality improvement initiatives underway in their hospitals, including Roseanne Killeen, Integrated Healthcare Area Manager at HSE Carlow Kilkenny and Tipperary South, Kate Murphy, Quality Manager in St Luke’s Hospital Kilkenny, Maura Grogan, Quality Manager in Tipperary University Hospital, and Angela Carey, Quality and Patient Safety Manager, University Hospital Waterford (pictured). As part of the National Care Experience Programme, a joint initiative of HIQA, the Health Service Executive and the Department of Health - Ireland, the National Inpatient Experience Survey captures the experience of patients in acute hospitals in Ireland. To access the survey’s national results or to search for a particular hospital’s results, please visit: https://lnkd.in/e7RK9zia #CareExperience #Healthcare #NationalInpatientExperienceSurvey

This week, Karen Jordan, our Senior Health Technology Assessment (HTA) Analyst, attended the 13th International Society for Newborn Screening (ISNS) European regional meeting taking place from 23-26 March in Luxembourg. Karen presented her poster titled ‘Health technology assessment of newborn screening for spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) in Ireland’, which shows how HTA can be used to inform decision-making on newborn screening. HIQA’s HTA of the addition of SMA to the National Newborn Bloodspot Screening Programme highlighted important issues which warranted careful consideration — for example, the ethical consequences of screening for SMA given that the condition can present with varying levels of severity. This HTA informed a positive recommendation by the National Screening Advisory Committee to implement screening for SMA in Ireland. To read that HTA, see https://lnkd.in/ejdbheur For more about the 13th International Society for Newborn Screening European regional meeting, see https://isns2025.com 

We have updated our guidelines for conducting economic evaluation and budget impact analysis in health technology assessments (HTAs). These guidelines w ere developed with the support of our HTA Scientific Advisory Group. The guidelines are intended to inform economic evaluations or budget impact analyses conducted by, or on behalf of HIQA, NCPE - National Centre for Pharmacoeconomics, the Department of Health - Ireland and the Health Service Executive (HSE), as well as health technology developers preparing applications for reimbursement. Economic evaluation compares the costs and benefits of different options for the health and social care system to determine which one is the best use of public resources. Budget impact analysis helps decision-makers understand the impact on the healthcare budget of introducing a new technology. Publication of these updated guidelines follows a public consultation held from 21 October to 2 December 2024. The feedback received was carefully considered. Submissions and responses to them are documented in a statement of outcomes report, which has also been published. #HTA All documents can be found on our website at https://lnkd.in/eiTnHbjU

We recently attended a Spring meeting of the HERCA’s working group on #MedicalApplications hosted by the Authority for Nuclear Safety and Radiation Protection (Autoriteit Nucleaire Veiligheid en Stralingsbescherming (ANVS) in the Netherlands.  Our Regional Manager for Ionising Radiation, Agnella Craig, participated in several sessions on the topic of patient protection and continues to work with HERCA on promoting the appropriate use of medical imaging. HIQA is the independent competent authority for medical exposures to ionising radiation in Ireland. Supporting this work, we regularly collaborate with HERCA (Heads of the European Radiological Protection Competent Authorities), a European voluntary association working together to contribute to a high level of radiological protection throughout Europe by identifying common issues and proposing practical solutions for these issues.    To learn more about our work in ionising radiation, please visit: https://lnkd.in/emUZ2eum

Today is World Social Work Day, which recognises all social care professionals for their hard work and commitment to delivering high-quality, person-centred care and support to people using health and social care services in Ireland. Social care professionals play an important role in the lives of children and young people availing of children’s social care services. Our role is to promote safety and quality in the children’s services under our remit, and we recognise the work that social care professionals do in helping ensure that children are safe, well cared for and happy with the support they are receiving.  We develop national standards which support social care professionals to deliver safe, consistent and coordinated care and support, so that people using health and social care services can reach their potential. We also create guidance and tools to support social care professionals to put standards into practice in their day-to-day work. Our range of guidance and tools can be found on our Learning Hub: https://lnkd.in/euuiTj7N #WorldSocialWorkDay #WSWD2025

We are hiring a Senior Project Manager to join our Information Division. The successful candidate will be responsible for the delivery of programmes and projects, and will work closely with business stakeholders and manage project resources. Learn more and apply below. #jobfairy #PRjobs