Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 16 June 2026
923. Deputy Pádraig O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Health the current status of the national delegation framework for healthcare assistants; the bodies involved in its development; the expected timeline for completion and implementation; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [45281/26]
View answer924. Deputy Pádraig O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Health the criteria that will be used under the proposed framework for professional regulation to determine whether healthcare assistants should be subject to statutory regulation; whether a formal risk assessment of the healthcare assistant role has been undertaken; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [45282/26]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 923 and 924 together.
With regard to regulation of healthcare assistants, as the Deputy may be aware, work is ongoing in my department to develop a framework to guide policy on the regulation of health and social care professionals into the future. The framework will modernise our approach to professional regulation both in terms of how decisions are made regarding professional regulation and the ways in which we regulate professions. The framework will be informed by an evidence and risk-based approach to regulation in line with requirements set out in the EU Proportionality Test Directive. The issues to be considered regarding the proportionate degree of regulatory force required to protect the public are complex and this is therefore a significant project requiring considerable research and engagement with relevant stakeholders.
Regulation of additional individual professions, including healthcare assistants, is not planned until the risk-based assessment framework is place in compliance with best practice, international evidence, and the Proportionality Test Directive. Once the framework is in place, professions will then be assessed. Work to develop the framework and to assess professions is likely to take a number of years. Officials are currently engaging with relevant stakeholders regarding the development of the framework. A workshop with unregulated professions took place in March of this year and healthcare assistants were among the professions represented at the workshop.
Healthcare assistants work as part of a multidisciplinary team and do not practise independently. They work under the supervision of registered nurses or midwives, who are regulated professionals bound by clear professional standards. Where tasks are delegated to an healthcare assistant, the nurse or midwife remains accountable for that decision and for the overall care provided. This means there is clear professional oversight, clear lines of responsibility and established safeguards for patients. For that reason, the risks associated with the role are managed through existing regulated professionals and workplace governance arrangements, rather than through a separate statutory register at this time.
The Department is committed to further strengthening these arrangements. A National Delegation Framework for Nurses and Midwives is currently being developed as a priority action under the Strategy for the Office of the Chief Nursing Officer 2024–2026. This framework will support safe, consistent and appropriate delegation of care. This will help ensure that tasks are carried out by the most suitable staff member, while maintaining high standards of patient care.
This work is being informed by international evidence, as well as engagement with key national and international stakeholders, including the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Ireland and Health Service Executive. The Department anticipates completion of the framework in 2026, followed by a structured phase of implementation.
