HSE Performance Committee Meeting Minutes 22 January 2026

Committee Members Present

Brendan Whelan (Chair), Tim Hynes, Kenneth Mealy, Pat Kirwan, Lily Collison, Matt Walsh.

HSE Executive Attendance

Patrick Lynch (ND Planning and Performance, Tony Canavan (REO West and North West), Damien McCallion (CTTO), Anne Marie Hoey (Chief People Officer), Colm Henry (CCO), Deirdre McNamara (Director Strategic Programmes CCO Office), JP Nolan (Head of Compliance, Assurance and Regulatory Affairs), Patricia Whelehan (AND Older Persons Services), Trevor O’Callaghan (IHA Manager Dublin South), Niamh Drew (Deputy Corporate Secretary), Rebecca Kennedy (Office of the Board).

Minutes reflect the order in which items were considered and are numbered in accordance with the original agenda. All performance/activity data used in this document refers to the latest information available at the time.

The Committee held a private session to review the agenda, the relevant papers and approach to conducting the meeting, as well as the Committee Workplan 2026.

Executive members joined the meeting

2.1 Declarations of Interest

No conflicts of interest were declared.

2.2 Minutes

The Committee approved the minutes of 11 December 2025.

3.1 National Performance Report (NPR) November 2025 Data

The NPR (November 2025 Data) and accompanying briefing paper, which had been circulated in advance of the meeting, were noted. The November 2025 NPR presents the HSE’s performance through the four lenses of the Balanced Scorecard (Quality, Access, People, Money), against a subset of the KPIs contained in the National Service Plan (NSP) 2025. The Committee noted the additional commentary relating to Urgent and Emergency Care; Planned Care, Cancer services and timely access to urgent colonoscopy services, and Primary Care Therapies, which were highlighted by the ND Planning and Performance.

The Committee discussed in particular serious incidents reporting and queried the wide variation in meeting targets in this area. The CCO advised that often this is because the KPI is based on timeliness, which does not capture the quality of the reports. The CCO confirmed that a review of the Incident Management Framework is currently underway, which will consider the best way of measuring how serious incidents are reported, and changes to the KPIs may then be proposed. The Committee also discussed low uptake of the flu vaccine among healthcare workers and it was agreed that an update would be provided to the Committee later in the year with an objective of having a much higher uptake in the coming Winter.

The ND Planning and Performance presented to the Committee on performance reporting in 2026, highlighting the new Performance and Accountability Framework; National Performance Report and Regional Performance Reports and associated supplementary reports; and the National Scorecard. The Committee discussed the upcoming Planning and Performance Data Hub and expressed support for the project and the continued development of performance reporting structures.

CCO and CPO left the meeting

AND Older Persons Services joined the meeting

4.1 Older Persons Services

The AND Older Persons Services updated the Committee on Older Persons Services. The Committee noted the papers circulated in advance of the meeting, which covered: Older Persons Performance 2025; 2025 Outturn; Growth in Home Support – 2018-2025; Health (Amendment)(Home Support Providers) Bill 2025; Home Support Services Provision; NSP 2026; Home Support Reform Programme Plans 2026; and Challenges, Risks and Issues.

In particular, the Committee discussed the policy landscape and upcoming changes to the regulatory framework under the Health (Amendment)(Home Support Providers) Bill 2025. The Committee requested further information on third-party governance changes, including details on allocation of funding, to be provided at a later meeting. It was agreed that a quarterly update on Older Persons Services would remain on the 2026 Committee workplan.

AND Older Persons Services left the meeting

IHA Manager Dublin South joined the meeting

5.1 CHI Commissioning

The Committee noted the papers previously circulated by the ND Planning and Performance (ND P&P) on the status of the New Children’s Hospital Ireland (NCHI) Programme and the Report to the National Oversight Group December 2025. The briefing included information on the Construction Programme & Early Access; and Budget position CHI and the National Paediatric Hospital Development Board (NPHDB).

The ND P&P highlighted to the Committee the governance lines associated with the project, noting that the CHI and NPHDB are separate entities: CHI has accountability for commissioning and operational readiness of the new hospital and the NPHDB is responsible for the hospital’s delivery. The ND P&P advised the Committee that increased visibility and reporting on the project are providing greater confidence in its delivery. The Committee emphasised the degree of challenge remaining to achieve a 2026 opening of the hospital.

It was agreed that an update on CHI would remain as a standing agenda item on the 2026 Committee workplan.

IHA Manager Dublin South left the meeting

No matters arose under this item.

The meeting ended at 15.34.