13 May Healthy Ireland Launches Strategic Plan
The Healthy Ireland Strategic Action Plan 2021–2025 Launched
The Healthy Ireland Strategic Action Plan 2021–2025, provides a clear roadmap of how we, as a society, can continue to work together to bring about good health, access to services, healthy environments, and the promotion of resilience and to ensure that everyone can enjoy physical and mental, health and wellbeing, to their full potential.
This action plan will build on the work and progress made to date and focus on the remaining years of the Healthy Ireland Framework from 2021–2025.
Healthy Ireland has been a core framework for the implementation of Sláintecare and the link with Sláintecare will be strengthened across the term of this new plan.
The Healthy Ireland Strategic Action Plan 2021–2025 was published by the Minister for Health, Stephen Donnelly TD and Minister of State for Public Health, Well Being and National Drugs Strategy Frank Feighan TD. A core component of the implementation of Sláintecare, this Healthy Ireland Strategy will have a particular emphasis on reducing inequalities.
At the launch of the new Strategic Action Plan, Taoiseach Micheál Martin said:
Healthy Ireland gives us a vision of how we as a society can work together to bring about a Healthier Ireland where everyone, can enjoy physical and mental, health and wellbeing, to their full potential. We will be placing a special emphasis on health inequalities in this plan and making sure that all people are ultimately enabled and empowered to live healthier lives. We will make sure to reach everyone, and that no one is left behind.
The Healthy Ireland Strategic Action Plan builds on the Healthy Ireland Framework which was published in 2013 and contains 56 actions across six themes which will be implemented over the next five years. Each action has a lead government department from across fourteen separate government departments. Minister
Minister Donnelly said:
We know that health and wellbeing is not evenly distributed across the population with our most deprived communities bearing a higher burden of chronic disease with increased levels of mortality. I am especially pleased that this plan aims to directly begin to address those communities most impacted by the social determinants of health through the inclusion of a new Sláintecare Healthy Communities programme, working in particular with Local Authorities, other government departments, NGOs, and the HSE to tackle health inequalities.
Partnership is the cornerstone of Healthy Ireland. COVID-19 has highlighted the importance of bringing together key players and stakeholders, to work together to a common goal, both at a local and a national level. This next phase of Healthy Ireland will build on these partnerships.
Minister Frank Feighan said:
Partnership has been the cornerstone of Healthy Ireland and the work so far has brought together key players and stakeholders, to work together towards a common goal, both at a local and a national level. This next phase of Healthy Ireland is no different. Healthy Ireland is bringing together people and organisations from the length and breadth of the country to address the risks to our health. We’ll be linking with government departments, public bodies and organisations, businesses and employers, sports and voluntary groups, communities and families. For this new plan there are many new partners coming to the table with exciting and ambitious projects.
Among some of the targets that Healthy Ireland will aim to deliver over the next three years are:
- implementation of a healthy campus programme in 30 third level institutions
- help 4,500 people to live in their own home with dignity and independence through the Sláintecare age-friendly healthy homes scheme
- develop new policies and action plans addressing sexual health, physical activity, nutrition, obesity and mental health promotion
- add 500 more clubs to the GAA health clubs model, as well as drive participation amongst other sporting organisations
- by 2022 develop 18 Sláintecare healthy communities in disadvantaged areas
The ongoing implementation of Healthy Ireland is a key action under Sláintecare. Prevention of illness, in addition to supporting people to live healthier lives, is also a vital element in reducing the demand for hospital services and improving quality of life.
Laura Magahy, Deputy Secretary at the Department of Health with responsibility for the implementation of Sláintecare, including Healthy Ireland, said:
One of the key principles of Sláintecare is to promote health and wellbeing and prevent illness and this principle embodies all that Healthy Ireland seeks to achieve. The Healthy Ireland Framework provides the architecture to address the social determinants of health and thereby the prevention of chronic disease and other avoidable illness and incapacity. We have ambitious plans over the next 5 years and I look forward in particular to the Sláintecare Healthy Communities Programme, which will provide additional health resources to people living in the areas of highest deprivation in the country.
The New Plan can be found at https://www.gov.ie/en/publication/441c8-healthy-ireland-strategic-action-plan-2021-2025/
An infographic on the achievements over the last 7 years can be found here.
An infographic on the targets for the next 3 years can be found here.
The Healthy Ireland Framework was published in 2013 and can be found here.