Speaking during a visit to Beaumont Hospital today, Minister of State for Health Promotion Marcella Corcoran Kennedy TD welcomed the launch of the RCSI Hospitals Group Healthy Ireland Implementation Plan 2016 – 2019. The Plan sets out the actions which the RCSI Hospitals Group is committed to making to implement Healthy Ireland, the Framework for Improved Health and Wellbeing to bring about organisational change to improve the health and wellbeing of staff, patients and communities.
Minister Corcoran Kennedy commented “The health service has an important role in working to improve the health and wellbeing of everybody living in Ireland. The Plan being launched today is a significant milestone showing commitment, leadership and determination by all of those who work in the RCSI Hospitals Group.”
The plan identifies three broad priority areas to achieve maximum impact on patients and staff in positively influencing their lifestyles to generate a happier and healthier population and workforce:
1) Reducing the burden of chronic disease
2) Improving breastfeeding rates in the three maternity services
3) Improving staff health and wellbeing
Across the priority areas, actions will be taken by the Hospital Group focused primarily on lifestyle changes for issues such as smoking, alcohol, healthy eating, active living, wellbeing and mental health, healthy childhood and positive ageing.
Minister Corcoran Kennedy congratulated the RCSI Hospitals Group on the Plan which, she said, would “ensure the protection, promotion, and improvement of the health and wellbeing of everybody living in the region served by the Group.” The Minister commented that “none of the actions, in isolation, will reduce the increasing burden of chronic disease that we face as a health service. But all of the actions taken together, with all of the staff of the RCSI Hospitals Group committed to implementing them, will see results.”
Minister Corcoran Kennedy concluded by saying “improving health and wellbeing, and preventing ill health, often comes down to people making small, and sometimes not so small, changes in their lifestyles and behaviours, but the Plan demonstrates a real commitment by the RCSI Hospitals Group to the systematic changes required to improve the health and wellbeing of everybody living in Ireland.”