The HSE National Service Plan 2025 has been published today. The plan sets a range of health and social care services that will be provided within the allocated budget of €26.9 billion, a €1.6 billion increase on 2024. This includes a €297.8 million investment in new service developments including enhancing mental health, older persons, and disability services.
Outgoing Minister for Health Stephen Donnelly said the service plan will “shortly be supported” by a capital plan involving approximately €1.4 billion for infrastructure and equipment across the health service. Some €190 million of the capital plan is specifically for digital and ICT infrastructure.
Speaking about the HSE’s priorities this year, Mr Ciarán Devane, HSE Chairperson, said: “The board’s overarching objectives for 2025 are to support improved efficiency and increased productivity, maintaining the ongoing focus on improving the quality of care, and continuing the shift to providing more care closer to people’s homes.
“The publication of this plan coincides with the 20th anniversary of the establishment of the HSE. During this time Irish health and social care services have been significantly reshaped to improved health outcomes for the people of Ireland.
“While we have seen significant progress over the last three years, a priority for the HSE in 2025 will be to further reduce waiting times. We will place a specific focus on maximising an integrated approach to care delivery across community and acute settings, enabled through our new health regions.”
Mr Bernard Gloster, CEO of the HSE, said: “At a time of unprecedented demand for services we must ensure that our funding delivers more care and services to the people of Ireland, reduces waiting times and improves health outcomes of the population. Our priority in 2025, therefore, must be a relentless focus on productivity and changed ways of working. Expanding our workforce, improving our buildings, adding new capacity and seeing more people than ever must all be pursued at the same time.
“The digital opportunities for the health service is one of those changes and a major priority as we face new challenges and ensure we can provide the health service the country needs and deserves. I am delighted that the business case for this national electronic health record is progressing and hope it will conclude to next stage approval in 2025. However, in the meantime there are critical steps along the way to this end, such as achieving a summary care record, HSE patient App and use of technology to develop virtual care. Digital for Care 2030 requires us to now deliver on significant steps over each of the next few years.”
Six new health regions have been established. According to the HSE, health and social care services will be planned and delivered around the specific needs of local populations leading to “better co-ordination of care and access to services”.
“This offers the opportunity to take the next step in creating a modern, value-based health and social care system. Finalising the change from the traditional operational centre of the HSE to a visible regional operating system overseen from the Centre is a key target by 1 March 2025. This will mark the completion of the most significant structural reform of the HSE and how it operates since the organisation first came into being,” stated the Executive.
A copy of the HSE National Service Plan 2025 can be accessed here: https://about.hse.ie/publications/hse-national-service-plan-2025/
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