The National Care Experience Programme seeks to improve the quality of health and social care services in Ireland by asking people about their experiences of care and acting on their feedback. It is a joint initiative by HIQA, the Health Service Executive (HSE) and the Department of Health.

The National Maternity Bereavement Experience Survey

The National Maternity Bereavement Experience Survey is the first national survey asking women and their partners about the maternity bereavement care they received in one of Ireland’s 19 maternity units or hospitals. The survey aims to learn from the experiences of bereaved parents in order to improve the standard and quality of maternity bereavement care in Ireland.

The results of the survey are now available to view here.

A survey providing patients with the opportunity to describe their experiences of public acute hospital care in Ireland. The purpose of this survey is to learn from patients’ feedback to find out what is working well in our hospitals, and what needs to be improved. The HSE responds to the results of the survey by developing quality improvement plans at national, hospital and hospital group levels. In addition, the results of the survey are used to inform regulation, national policies and standards.

A survey which offers women the opportunity to share their experiences of Ireland’s maternity services, from antenatal care, through care during labour and birth, to postnatal care. The aim of the survey is to learn from the experiences of women to improve the safety and quality of the care that they and their baby receive. The first National Maternity Experience Survey was carried out in early 2020. The results of the survey and the HSE’s response are now available on yourexperience.ie.

The survey is the first national survey asking bereaved parents about their experiences of maternity bereavement care in Ireland. The survey invited parents who have been bereaved by a second trimester miscarriage, a stillborn infant or early neonatal death of a baby to share their experiences of care. 

The survey will gather important information on bereaved parents’ lived experiences of maternity bereavement care from antenatal diagnosis through to hospital admission, labour and birth, postnatal and bereavement care, and investigations and follow-up care. There was also a separate section for a partner or support person to complete as well as some free text boxes for any additional comments.

The survey aims to learn from the experiences of bereaved parents in order to improve the standard and quality of maternity bereavement care in Ireland.

Resources for parents who have been bereaved by pregnancy and infant loss are available at Pregnancy and Infant Loss Ireland.

The results of the survey are now available to view here.

The National Nursing Home Experience Survey is the first national survey asking nursing home residents and their relatives and friends about their experiences of nursing home care in Ireland. The survey aims to learn from and understand these experiences in order to improve the care provided in Irish nursing homes.

The results of the survey are now available to view here.

The survey will be the first national survey asking bereaved relatives about the care provided to a family member or friend in the last months and days of their life.

The purpose of the survey is to learn from people’s experiences of end-of-life care in order to improve the services provided both to people who are dying, and to their loved ones.

Individuals who register the death of a family member or friend that occurred between 1 September and 31 December 2022 will be invited to participate in the survey and will receive a survey pack in the post between March and May 2023.

The Survey Hub supports health and social care providers to develop and implement their own surveys. The Survey Hub offers a suite of resources for anyone aiming to capture the experiences of people using health and social care services.

The Survey Hub provides advice on how to develop and implement a survey, interpret the findings, and make improvements based on the results. The hub contains e-learning modules, presentations, podcasts and guidance.

For more information and to view all the resources and materials available, visit the Survey Hub on yourexperience.ie.

For further information on the National Care Experience Programme, visit yourexperience.ie or by following us on Twitter, Instagram or  Facebook YourInpatientExperience / Facebook YourMaternityExperience.

HIQA, as the lead partner in this initiative, is responsible for implementing and managing the programme, which includes the National Inpatient Experience Survey, the National Maternity Experience Survey, the National Maternity Bereavement Experience Survey, the National End of Life Survey and the National Nursing Homes Experience Survey.