Cathal Crowe (Clare, Fianna Fail)
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1674. To ask the Minister for Health if he will amend the Health and Social Care Professionals Act 2005 to give full recognition to athletic therapists (details supplied). [2125/23]

Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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As the Deputy may be aware, CORU is Ireland’s multi-profession health and social care regulator. Seventeen health and social care professions are designated for regulation by CORU under the Health and Social Care Professionals Act 2005. There are currently registers open for ten professions and CORU is continuing the substantial work required to open the registers for the remaining professions.

A number of representative bodies for unregulated professions have approached the Department seeking to be regulated. The issues to be considered regarding the proportionate degree of regulatory force required to protect the public are complex. In light of the various issues to be considered, and in line with ongoing work in the Department of Health, the Health Research Board was requested to carry out research on behalf of the Department to assist in policy development in this area. The report, “National Approaches to Regulating Health and Social Care Professions”, examines the approaches to the regulation of health and social care professionals internationally and is publicly available on the Department’s website:

www.gov.ie/en/publication/ea62b-national-approaches-to-regulating-health-and-social-care-professions/

My officials are in the process of drawing from this report and other relevant sources in the development of policy for the regulation of health and social care professionals into the future.