Hildegarde Naughton (Galway West, Fine Gael)

I thank the Deputy for raising this issue. I am taking this question on behalf of my colleague, the Minister, Deputy Jennifer Carroll MacNeill. The Minister and the Government continue to make progress in improving access to meet the health needs of rural and remote communities. Sláintecare is the roadmap for reform of our healthcare system. A key milestone is the organisation of the HSE into six health regions. This took place last year and a phased transition to the new structures continues. Each region is now empowered to plan and deliver services tailored to the needs of its population. At the same time, we must maintain a national health service with consistent standards across all regions and communities.

I will outline how the health regions are structured to deliver on these commitments. Regions will adopt a population-based planning approach based on the specific needs of their areas. A population-based approach to service delivery emphasises prevention and early intervention. This complements existing programmes such as Healthy Ireland and Sláintecare Healthy Communities. The HSE’s population-based planning framework provides principles and key steps for the teams doing this work. For example, regions now have detailed publicly available population health profiles. These draw on census data and cover both the region as a whole and smaller community health areas of approximately 50,000 people. In addition to planning, we must ensure our workforce is equipped to meet these evolving needs. For example, the University of Galway has recently developed medical and pharmacy education with a specific focus on rural healthcare.

This focus on the broader determinants of health promotes integrated care across all levels of service. Integrated care means patients experience smoother transitions between services with better co-ordination and improved outcomes. To achieve this, the HSE is rolling out the next phase of its integrated service delivery, ISD, model. This is a central part of the health regions reform. Staff are now being reconfigured from care group teams to integrated teams which serve defined geographic areas. There are 20 integrated healthcare areas, IHAs, across the country, including one for the county of Kerry.

Each IHA has a dedicated senior manager at national director level. The IHA manager is responsible for all health services delivered in their area. This reconfiguration promotes joined-up care and accountability across primary, community and acute services.

The Deputy raises the possibility of a study on the health service needs in the Iveragh and Dingle peninsulas. However, this is exactly the kind of insight that the new local teams are designed to address, with support from experts in the HSE centre.

In the south west, the HSE is implementing innovative solutions to improve access in rural areas. Mobile clinics, telehealth services, and digital infrastructure are bringing care closer to people's homes. The telehealth roadmap and the digital for care 2030 framework are expanding remote consultations and health monitoring. These initiatives reduce travel time, improve access, and support continuity of care for rural patients and service users.

While these innovations are promising, the Department of Health recognises that workforce remains a key challenge, particularly in remote and hard-to-reach areas. Under the new HSE structures, the HSE south west is now able to recruit and retain staff across all service areas within their allocated budget.

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