Every time you visit your GP or go to a hospital for treatment, important health information about your health and care needs is recorded. Your health information is used by healthcare professionals who provide care to you and also for other purposes, such as planning healthcare services and improving the quality of these services.

HIQA, in partnership with the Department of Health and the HSE, is conducting a number of public engagement activities to gather the views of people living in Ireland on the collection, use and sharing of health information. The public engagement activities include a National Public Engagement Survey on Health Information, interviews with health and social care professionals, meetings with key stakeholders and focus groups with the public, patients and special interest groups.

The National Public Engagement Survey on Health Information, which ran from October to November 2020, gave the public a platform to voice their opinions on this topic and have a meaningful impact on how their health information will be collected, used and shared. The results of this survey will be used:

• by HIQA to inform the development of recommendations on a consent model for the collection, use and sharing of health information in Ireland,
• by the Department of Health and the HSE to inform future developments in relation to national health information strategy and policy.