Ireland

Healthcare System

Ireland provides free access to healthcare for all its residents, but it is not universal healthcare. The Health Service Executive (HSE) provides health and social care services through its own hospitals and Community Health Organization structures, as well as through the servuces of general practicians, pharmacists and other health professionals. They're also responsible for large voluntary providers of social care and voluntary hospitals.

The availability and costs of public health services depend on an individual's circumstances. While some services, such as maternal and infant care and immunizations, are free of charge to everyone, access to other services varies. The population is divided into two categories. Category 1, which makes up about 36% of the population, consists of people with medical cards primarily given to those with low incomes. These cards provide access to certain services at no cost, including GP and hospital care, as well as reduced costs for prescription medicines. Category 2, comprising 64% of the population, does not have medical cards, but some households may qualify for a GP visit card (10%), providing free GP care but requiring payments for other public system services. GP visit cards are also given to children under 6 and adults over 70. Additionally, approximately 46% of the population has private health insurance, with another 20% not covered by a medical card, a GP visit card, or private health insurance.

The main statistical body of Ireland is the Central Statistics Office (CSO), who compiles data from a variety of other research and statistical bodies such as the Health Research Institute, Department of Health, and Health Service Executive, on top of producing their own health information with surveys and reports.

Administrative or Claims Data

Compilation: Department of Health Databases (CSO)

Sponsor, manager or home institution: Department of Health; Central Statistics Office.

Primary purpose: Databases provided by the Department of Health and made available through the Central Statistics Office website to disseminate data.

Type of information: Data on discharge, diagnostics and procedures for inpatients.

Source of Information: Unknown.

Data level: National level.

Number of Records: Unknown.

Date Range: Varies.

Cancer Areas of Interest: Varies.

Open data access: Data is oublicly available. Databases can be found here through the filterng tool.

Information/Contact for data request: Contact information can be found here.

Registries

Database: National Cancer Registry

Sponsor, manager or home institution: National Cancer Registry of Ireland.

Primary purpose: Collect and disseminate cancer incidence statistics.

Type of information: Data dictionary can be found here.

Available type of information: Cancer incidence and survival filtered by age, type of cancer, sex, and region.

Source of Information: Data is collected from hospital medical records by nurses acting as hospital liasons. Death information is collected using death certificates.

Data level: Patient level.

Available data level: Regional and national level.

Number of Records: Unknown.

Date Range: 1994 onwards.

Cancer Areas of Interest:All invasive, minus NMSC (C00-C43, C45-C96); lip (C00); base of tongue (C01); mouth and pharynx (C01-C14); other tongue (C02); gum (C03); floor of mouth (C04); palate (C05); other mouth (C06); parotid (C07); other salivary (C08); tonsil (C09); oropharynx (C10); nasopharynx (C11); pyriform (C12); hypopharynx (C13); other mouth/pharynx (C14); oesophagus (C15); stomach (C16); small intestine (C17); colon (C18); colorectal (C18-C21); rectosigmoid (C19); rectum (C20); anus (C21); liver (C22); gallbladder (C23); other biliary (C24); pancreas (C25); other digestive (C26); nasal cavity/middle ear (C30); sinuses (C31); larynx (C32); trachea (C33); lung (C34); thymus (C37); mediastinum (C38); other chest (C39); bones, joints of limbs (C40); bones, joints head and trunk (C41); melanoma skin (C43); non-melanoma skin (NMSC) (C44); mesothelioma (C45); kaposi's sarcoma (C46); peripheral nerves (C47); peritoneum (C48); connective tissues (C49); breast (C50); vulva (C51); vagina (C52); cervix (C53); corpus uteri (C54); uterus NOS (C55); ovary (C56); other female genital (C57); placenta (C58); penis (C60); prostate (C61); testis (C62); other male genital (C63); kidney (C64); renal pelvis (C65); ureter (C66); bladder (C67); other urinary (C68); eye (C69); meninges (C70); brain (C71); spinal cord (C72); thyroid (C73); adrenal (C74); other endocrine (C75); III-defined site (C76); unknown primary site (C80); Hodgkin's lymphoma (C81); lymphoma (total) (C81-C85); follicular non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (C82); all non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (C82-C85); diffuse non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (C83); peripheral and cutaneous T cell lymphoma (C84); other and unspecified NHL (C85); malignant immunoproliferative disease (C88); multiple mieloma (C90); lymphoid leukaemia (C91); leukaemia (total) (C91-C95); myeloid leukaemia (C92); monocytic leukaemia (C93); other specified leukaemia (C94); unspecified leukaemia (C95); other lymphoid and haematopoietic (C96); all non-invasive cancers (D00-D48); in-situ: melanoma (D03); in-situ: carcinoma of skin (D04); in situ: breast (D05); in situ cervix (D06); benign: brain & CNS (D32-D33); uncertain: brain & CNS (D42-D43); All cancers except NMSC (C00-C097 ex 044); biliary (C23-C24); bladder cancer invasive (C67); bladder cancer invasive/in situ/uncertain (C67/D09.0/D41.4); bone & cartilage cancer (C40-C41); cervical (C53); chronic myeloid leukaemia (C92.1); chronic myeloproliferative disease (M9960-9964/3); hypopharyngeal (C12-C13); kidney & related cancer (C64-C66 & C68); melanoma of choroid (C69.3); multiple melanoma (C90.0); myelodysplastic syndromes (M-9980-9989/3); oral & pharyngeal cancer ex salivary glands (C01-C06 & C09-C13); oral cancer (C03-C06); oropharyngeal cancer (C09-C10); ovary & uterine adnexal cancer (C56, C57.0-57.7); penis & related cancers (C60 & C63); pleural (C38.4 & C45); polycythaemia vera (M-9950/3); rectal/anal cancer (C19-C21); salivary gland cancer (C08-C09); soft tissue cancer (C47 & C49); vaginal/vulvar & related cancer (C51-C52, C57.8-C57.9).

Open data access: Data is partially publicly available. Data can be found here. Information on how to access data can be found here.

Information/Contact for data request: Contact information can be found here.

Database: Vital Statistics

Sponsor, manager or home institution: Central Statistics Office (CSO)

Primary purpose: Provide information about Marriages Registration, Death Registration, Stillbirths Registration, Live Births Registration and Mortality Differentials in Ireland.

Type of information: Age of bride and groom, Previous marital status of bride and groom, Area of residence of bride and groom before and after marriage, Occupation of bride and groom, Place of marriage and Type of marriage ceremony, Date of death, Address of residence of deceased, Place of death, Cause of death, Occupation of deceased, Age of deceased, Sex of deceased, Marital Status of deceased and Birth weight, Gestational Age, Date of birth of infant, Date of birth of parents, Marital status of mother, Number of previous children, County of residence of mother, Multiplicity, Occupation of parents, Baby's forename.

Available type of information: Births by age of mother and sex of child, area of residence, region, within and outside of marriage/civil partnership, average age of mother, within and outside of marriage/civil partnership, birth rate per 1,000 Population, date and month of occurrence, previous born children, period of gestation, birthweight, place of occurrence, nationality of mother, nationality of both parents, total number of hospital births, fertility rates, occupation of mother. Deaths occurring by area of residence, sex and age group, cause of death, sex and age group. Suicides by area of residence and sex. Published Suicide Deaths and Late Registered Deaths. Live Births and Stillbirths and Infant Mortality.

Source of Information: Methodology for each section of the Vital Statistics database can be found here.

Data level: Patient level.

Available data level: Regional, national level.

Number of Records: Unknown.

Date Range: Varies for each section and variable.

Cancer Areas of Interest: All.

Open data access: Data is partially publicly available. Data can be accessed here. Information on how to access full database can be found here. Reports can be found here.

Information/Contact for data request: Contact information can be found here.

Databases for Clinical Trials, Surveys and Biobanks

Survey: Irish Health Survey 2019

Sponsor, manager or home institution: Central Statistics Office.

Primary purpose: Is the Irish version of the European Health Interview Survey (EHIS), and the goal is to obtain reliable information about health care status and usage in order to create more effective policies.

Type of information: Health behavior and health care usage information, including smoking behavior; filtered by economic situation, gender, age, region, and disability status. Survey questions can be found here.

Source of Information: Responses to the survey questions conducted all over Ireland.

Data level: Patient level.

Available data level: Regional, national level.

Number of Records: 7,621 respondents.

Date Range: 2019. Survey was also conducted in 2015.

Cancer Areas of Interest: All cancer areas related to smoking.

Open data access: Data is partially publicly available. Publicly available data can be accessed here. Information on how to access full database can be found here.

Information/Contact for data request: Contact information can be found here.

Survey: Healthy Ireland Survey

Sponsor, manager or home institution: Department of Health, Statistics and Analytics Unit.

Primary purpose: Obtain information about the health status and behavior of the irish population.

Type of information: Survey responses about topics including general health, smoking, alcohol, weight management, health service utilisation, dental and oral health, skin protection, menstrual health and period poverty, suicide awareness, impact of COVID-19 on health behaviors. The survey questionnaire used for the 2022 survey can be found here.

Available type of information: Survey reports for all the years.

Source of Information: Responses from survey questionnaire.

Data level: Patient level.

Available data level: National level.

Number of Records: Around 7,500 respondents.

Date Range: 2014-2022.

Cancer Areas of Interest: All cancer areas related to smoking.

Open data access: Data is not publicly available. Reports can be found here. Information on how to access microdata can be found here.

Information/Contact for data request: Contact information was not found.

Latest Policymaking Initiatives

Compilation: Cancer Statistics Reports

Sponsor, manager or home institution: National Cancer Registry of Ireland.

Primary purpose:' Provide reports about cancer data collected by the institute.

Type of information: Annual financial reports, strategic plans, cancer trends & projections, statistical reports, cancer atlases, research publications, all Ireland cancer statistics, infographics.

'Level: National level.

Access to information: Information can be found here.