IHCA launches major clinician-led reform plan for health service

FutureCare 2026 conference to hear calls for additional bed capacity, a doubling in NTPF funding, more physician-run hospitals and new accreditation standards in 10-Point Action Plan for health service 

A new clinician-led Action Plan for Health will be launched today by the Irish Hospital Consultants Association (IHCA), focusing on improving access, safety and patient outcomes across the health service. 

Unveiled at the IHCA FutureCare Conference in Dublin, the 10-point Action Plan is a clinician-led alternative to the almost decade-old, politician-driven Sláintecare policy, much of which has yet to be delivered. The IHCA says its plan provides a sustained, structured focus on real world policies that are shaped by those who see, first-hand, how system design affects patients on wards, in emergency departments and on waiting lists.

Taking place at the Dublin Royal Convention Centre, FutureCare 2026 will hear from international speakers from the Mayo Clinic and the Cleveland Clinic in the US and from Germany on how leadership, governance, digital health and funding models can be aligned to improve patient outcomes and system performance.

10-Point Action Plan for Health
The IHCA’s 10-point FutureCare Action Plan launched today sets out a number of clear priorities including:

• The immediate and sustained expansion of hospital and critical care capacity, including the full delivery of all elective hospitals and surgical hubs
• A doubling in the level of NTPF funding from €200m to €400m to provide timely care to an additional 143,000 patients
• Mandatory, internationally recognised accreditation and quality standards
• Clinician-led governance at hospital and system level
• Accelerated delivery of national Electronic Health Records
• Significant increases in consultant and other medical staff to delivery timely patient care.

Results from a new IHCA survey reveal that 86% of consultants are working longer than their contractual hours, with 40% working 45 hours or more per week. When asked to quantify the level of extra work or ‘discretionary effort’ they provide each week on a voluntary basis ‘above and beyond’ their contractual hours, 41% said they are working 7 hours or more extra per week, with a quarter (24%) providing 10 or more hours in ‘discretionary effort’ and 11% working an additional 13 hours or more. 

The Association warns that continued reliance on such goodwill from consultants and crisis management from health officials is no longer tenable, and that failure to act now will carry significant clinical, human and economic costs.

Learning from international experience
The Mayo Clinic and the Cleveland Clinic are frequently cited as exemplars of clinician-led health systems, blending strong clinical leadership with integrated digital infrastructure and a culture of continuous improvement. Today’s conference will explore how these principles can be adapted to the Irish context, recognising differences in scale, funding and system organisation. The Association is also launching a new educational initiative at the conference to support consultant doctors in developing the leadership and management skills needed to drive improvement from within hospitals.

Former Garda Commissioner and executive leader Ms Nóirín O’Sullivan will also address FutureCare 2026 on leading organisational and cultural change. Among the other speakers are the new Master of the National Maternity Hospital, Prof Jennifer Walsh, the CEO of Children’s Health Ireland, Ms Lucy Nugent, Group CEO of the Mater Private Healthcare Group Mr John Hurley, and CEO of the National Treatment Purchase Fund Ms Fiona Brady. 

Leadership perspectives
Professor Gabrielle Colleran, President of the Irish Hospital Consultants Association, said: “Ireland’s health service is operating at – and too often beyond – the limits of safe capacity. This is not a short-term pressure but a structural problem that requires structural solutions.
“FutureCare 2026 is about confronting that reality honestly and setting out a clinician-led roadmap for reform that focuses on capacity, governance and sustainable funding.” 

Jim Daly, Chief Executive of the IHCA, added: “The Irish health system stands at an inflexion point. Demand is rising rapidly, resources are finite, and the old ways of managing through crisis are no longer sufficient. This conference, and the Action Plan being launched alongside it, are about moving from reaction to strategy, and from fragmentation to accountability.”
ENDS

IHCA FutureCare Action Plan for Health here. 
Agenda for FutureCare 2026 Conference here.

Event details
FutureCare 2026 – Defining Ireland’s Health Future
Date: Thursday, 12 February 2026, 9am-3pm
Venue: Dublin Royal Convention Centre, Ship Street, Dublin 8

Contact: JP Hughes, Head of Communications & Engagement, 
Email: jphughes@ihca.ie, Tel: 085 77 66 393