| dc.description | There are many aspects of the health and social care service in Ireland that we can be very proud of. Our healthcare staff are routinely praised for their hard work and empathy and, of those in-patients surveyed in 2018, 84% expressed satisfaction with the service. Life expectancy increased in Ireland by 2.4 years between 2005 and 2018 and is now above the EU average, and mortality rates have decreased. As Irish people we can expect to live, disability-free, for longer and more of us can expect to live longer after a cancer diagnosis than ever before.
However, in spite of these successes, we know our health and social care services need significant improvement in many areas, particularly in relation to timely access to affordable care. Further pressures are already being felt as we are growing as a population by 60,000 people each year. In ten years’ time there will be more people aged over 65 than under 14. There will be one million people over 65 and 100,000 people over 80 – one third more than now.
More people means more demand, and, as well as needing the right infrastructure – people, buildings and e-health – to deliver the right services, we also need to rethink how we deliver these services, placing a greater emphasis on prevention and population health initiatives in order to support people to live independently in their own community for as long as possible. We need to deliver health and social care services in a way that is efficient, effective and sustainable, meeting the needs of all patients, citizens, families with disabilities, people with mental health needs and carers. This will require a whole-society approach with new ways of thinking and working together.
We also know there is geographic variation in current service availability. Depending on where you live, some services are only available to medical card holders, not everyone is eligible for the same services, and there is limited availability of some services. So, we need to offer public services in a fair and transparent way, and create more services for the growing population.
Sláintecare is about delivering a health and social care service that meets the needs of our population and attracts and retains the very best healthcare professionals, managers and staff. Over a ten-year period, we will deliver a universal health service that offers the right care, in the right place, at the right time, with a priority focus on developing primary and community services within a national policy context. With appropriate, well-governed investment, we will deliver a service that is given by the right team at low or no charge. Crucially, it will be essential to engage with staff, staff representative bodies, and the wider stakeholder network, to find new ways of working to deliver expanded services and optimise the wealth of skills and knowledge inherent in our workforce.
While Sláintecare will take ten years to implement in its entirety, this Action Plan 2019 outlines key areas of focus for 2019, the first full year of Sláintecare implementation. | en |
