Written answer
Departmental Reviews
A Department-HSE Steering Group is reviewing the Primary Care Centre Programme, with work on Comptroller and Auditor General recommendations expected to conclude in Q4 2026.
3878. Deputy Pádraig Rice asked the Minister for Health further to Parliamentary Question No. 220 of 28 January 2026, to provide an update on her Department’s review of the Primary Care Centre Programme; if she still anticipates that this work will be completed in Q4 2026; if she will commit to publishing this review once completed; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [58080/26]
Comment on this
The Government’s long-standing strategic goal is to deliver a comprehensive national network of Primary Care Centres (PCCs) to support the achievement of primary care service delivery. This programme seeks to ensure that PCCs are:
• located in the right place i.e. in line with demographic requirements and healthcare demand
• optimally utilising existing infrastructure
• construction completed in the most cost-effective manner
• supporting the Sláintecare vision of ensuring that the right care, is delivered in the right place, and at the right time.
The 2025 Programme for Government - ‘Securing Ireland’s Future’ - commits to ‘ensuring people can access as much care as possible in their home and in their community’ and specifically commits to:
Open more primary care centres and expedite the delivery of the existing pipeline to construction.
A key consideration for the Department and the HSE in delivering on this commitment is to ensure that facilities are planned and delivered in a way that ensures optimal access to primary care services and optimum value for money.
To this end, the Department has established a Steering Group, including members from the HSE, to review and update the PCC Programme to ensure: the ongoing delivery of PCCs reflects Programme for Government commitments, Primary Care Strategy, Healthcare Infrastructure Investment Policy and recommendations in the C&AG report that was published in 2025.
The Steering Group has developed structured workstreams, focused on progressing priority areas of work that include but are now broader than progressing the recommendations of the C&AG report. It is anticipated that the Steering Group will conclude it's work relating to the C&AG report recommendations in Q4 2026.