HSE Excellence Awards celebrate staff creativity and innovation

Staff across the HSE were recognised today for their continued efforts in improving healthcare in Ireland. In its ninth year, the HSE Excellence Awards provide an opportunity to showcase the incredible work by HSE staff in seeking new ways of working, improving efficiency, reducing the impact of healthcare on the climate and reducing costs.

Projects across a spectrum of healthcare services were entered this year, including:

• Early Warning System to recognise deterioration in Older Persons residential care facilities.
• An Integrated Service Delivery (ISD) Model to ensure patients and service users are central to service design.
• Improving care in ADHD.
• Improving Dementia care.
• Providing digital solutions to healthcare through virtual wards.

Recognising the efforts of HSE staff Bernard Gloster, HSE CEO said: “These awards create the opportunity to show innovation and creativity, which ultimately improves the services that we provide. Well done and thank you to all those short-listed, as well as the runners-up and overall winners. It is your work that helps pave the way to a brighter future for Ireland’s health service. I am struck by the generosity of healthcare staff to innovate, explore and share, all for the public good. You are remarkable.”

Anne Marie Hoey, HSE Chief People Officer, highlighted the broader impact: “As well as recognising the great work of staff and teams across our wide range of services, the Excellence Awards are an important channel to share learnings across the health service.   Through this pooling of knowledge and expertise, the projects inspire pride, teamwork and collaboration - positively impacting staff environments and improving outcomes for those who rely on our care.”

HSE Excellence Awards Winners 2025

Innovation in Integrated Care – Sláintecare

Winner: Older Persons Long-term Residential Care Facilities, Corporate/National Services

Project: IRESTORE Residential Older Persons Early Warning System (EWS)

Mary Bedding, Project Lead, National Deteriorating Patient Improvement Programme (DPIP), explained: “After COVID-19, staff in residential care facilities (RCFs) identified the need for an Early Warning System to aid early recognition and management of acute deterioration. A test of concept was launched in 2022.”

Pilot data 2024 versus 2023 baseline data demonstrated reductions in:

• Unplanned transfers (down 25%)
• Usual GP transfers (with/without review) (down 48%)
• Non-falls medical emergency transfers (down 25%)
• 69% deterioration episodes - soft-signs (early flags of deterioration) present

Improving Patient/Service User Experience

Joint winner: HSE Health Regions

Project: Patient and Service User Partnership Co-designing Integrated Service Delivery Model

The Integrated Service Delivery (ISD) Model ensures patients and service users are central to service design. From 2023 to 2025, five workshops were co-designed with service users, focusing on their perspectives.

This resulted in:

• Stronger relationships and trust
• Improved engagement and outcomes
• Evaluation rated workshops 4.3 out of 5
• 100% of participants are willing to collaborate again

Joint winner: IHA Midlands (Formerly CH08), HSE Dublin and Midlands

Project: CHO8 Children's Services Design-Led Project

Human-Centred Design was employed to redesign Children’s Services with over 370 stakeholders (service users, frontline staff, managers) from disabilities, mental health, and primary care.The initiative aimed to create a unified, timely, and family-focused service.

Key outcomes included:

• Co-designed Single Point of Access
• Integrated Autism Assessment pathway
• Parent communication resources

Excellence in Quality and Patient Safety

Joint winner: ADMiRE, ADHD Specialist Service, Linn Dara CAMHS, HSE Dublin and Midlands

Project: Developing ADMiRE: A Specialist Paediatric ADHD Service

Led by Professor Jane McGrath, Consultant Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist, HSE and Associate Professor, Trinity College Dublin, the team addressed a critical gap in ADHD care: “In Ireland, 1-in-3 children in CAMHS are diagnosed with ADHD. ADMiRE was developed to provide consistent, evidence-based intervention.”

Outcomes include:

• Service-user-satisfaction exceptionally high (2022–2024)
• ADMiRE-protocol, psychoeducation-site, and training-resources now used nationally
• Safer, standardised, evidence-based ADHD-care nationally

Joint winner: Féileacán Bán, Cherry Orchard Hospital and Community Healthcare, HSE Dublin and Midlands

Project: Co-Designed Nursing-Led Community Services, Transforming Dementia Care Delivery

Edel Carey, Registered Advanced Nurse Practitioner, described the project: “The idea for Féileacán Bán emerged in 2018 from my frontline experience witnessing gaps in dementia care. Inspired by patients’ and caregivers’ stories, I began co-designing a compassionate, community-based service. The first pathway launched in 2019, expanding into five integrated pathways by 2021.”

Findings include:

• Improved confidence (91%), mood (53%), quality of life (51%), and reduced anxiety (44%)
• Carer burden decreased by 54%, with 57% reporting improved quality of life
• 94% satisfaction
• €863,704 in cost savings

Engaging a Digital Solution to Provide a Better Service

Winner: National Chronic Disease Prevention and Treatment General Practice Programme (CDM), Corporate/National Services

Project: National Chronic Disease Prevention and Treatment Programme

The CDM programme supports structured management in general practice for patients with cardiovascular disease, COPD, asthma, and type 2 diabetes. It emphasises prevention, early diagnosis, and care close to home.

Impact (as of May 2025):

• Over 400,000 patients enrolled
• 91% receiving routine care in community settings
• 30% fewer ED visits
• 26% fewer hospital admissions
• 33% fewer out-of-hours GP visits

Working Together for a Greener Health Service

Winner: St James' Hospital Theatre Department, HSE Dublin and Midlands

Project: Operation Green – Sustainability Suggestion of the Month (SSM)

This initiative encouraged sustainable practices in the theatre department, promoting staff engagement and environmental awareness.  Dr Sinéad O'Brien, Anaesthesia Specialist Registrar, said: “We saw the impact of theatre-wide cooperation with visible adoption of our suggestions and measurable success, especially in waste management.”

Findings include:

• Increase in staff engaged with daily sustainability practices – 88% reporting they incorporated them regularly
• Measurable increase in general and glass recycling, resulting in an approximate reduction of 70 tonnes of CO2e production and €99,000 savings per annum

The awards ceremony took place on Thursday, 4 December 2025, in Farmleigh House, Dublin’s Phoenix Park. See @HSE_HR on X, #HSEExcellenceAwards25 for more information.