Minister for Health, Jennifer Carroll MacNeill TD, has appointed Mr Sean O’Driscoll as the Chair of the Mid West Health Planning Board.
The Health Planning Board is being established to provide strategic direction and oversight on the development of a Mid West Service and Infrastructure Plan for the region.
In making the announcement today, Minister Carroll MacNeill, said: “People in Clare, Limerick and North Tipperary need a long-term solution for improved healthcare – quality care close to home – that meets the needs of the people of the region, irrespective of their geography. We had a positive development with the purchase of the site at Raheen in March of this year and today’s announcement is the next step in our work to bring care closer to home for the people and patients of the region.
“I am especially delighted to appoint Sean O’Driscoll as the Chair of the Mid West Health Planning Board. Sean brings vast commercial, industry and research experience as well as a focus on delivering results, which we have seen most recently through his work on the Accelerating Infrastructure Taskforce. I hope his appointment is a signal to the people of the region of just how seriously we are taking the development of healthcare services and infrastructure for them. I am grateful to Sean for accepting this position, along with all members of the Board, he will undertake this work on a pro-bono basis.
“I know how important the establishment of the Mid West Health Planning Board is for patients, staff and families in Clare, Limerick and North Tipperary. People in the Mid West have waited too long for the improvements that are needed and they rightly expect to see real progress. This is a huge opportunity to be ambitious for the patients and for the future of healthcare development in Clare, Limerick and North Tipperary.”
The Board is made up of senior regional Health Service Executive (HSE) leaders and multidisciplinary expertise across service delivery, clinical care, infrastructure, finance, and enterprise, alongside patient and service-user representation to ensure that community needs and lived experience inform the Board’s work.
The Board will focus on how services can be organised across hospital, community, primary care, and pre-hospital services. This includes looking at how care can be provided closer to home, where appropriate, how pressure on University Hospital Limerick (UHL) can be reduced, and how existing and future locations can best work together for the whole region.
The Board is charged with overseeing the development of a credible roadmap for safe, accessible and sustainable healthcare in the Mid West, ensuring that decisions are informed by evidence, with regional input, and the needs of patients and communities.
Minister of State at the Department of Health for Older People, Kieran O’Donnell TD, welcomed the appointment of Mr O’Driscoll, saying:
“As Chair, Sean O’Driscoll brings a wealth of experience through his role in advising Government as part of the Accelerating Infrastructure Task Force and his significant commercial experience. He will lead the work of the Mid West Health Planning Board in providing strategic direction and oversight in developing a plan to deliver health services and infrastructure for the Mid West region.
“Today marks an important step in the Government progressing the recommendations made by HIQA on the design and delivery of urgent and emergency healthcare services in the Mid West.
“The Board will set out a vital roadmap for the current and future healthcare needs of patients, their families and staff in Limerick and the region, including providing the additional capacity that is very much required.”
The Health Planning Board will build on work already underway across the region, including the expansion of bed capacity at University Hospital Limerick, the acquisition of the Raheen site, and the ongoing implementation of the Government’s blended approach to the Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA) recommendations.
The Board will begin its work in September and finalise the delivery of the Service and Infrastructure Plan for the Mid West within nine months.
Following the publication of the Plan, the HSE will develop and deliver on an implementation plan to advance the work of the Health Planning Board.
Board Membership:
Chair: Sean O’Driscoll
HSE National Services: Sheila McGuinness
HSE National Director: Capital Delivery: Joe Hoare
HSE National Clinical Lead, Acute Medicine Programme: Dr Sean Flemming
Consultant Cardiologist & Regional Clinical Lead for Strategy & Development: Dr Terry Hennessy
Construction, Engineering & Renewables Specialist: Alma Kelly
Financing and Capital Markets Expertise: Des Carville
Patient & Service User Council Representative: John Wall
Consultant Clinician (Otolaryngology Surgeon): Professor James Paul O’Neill
Director of Nursing (Older Persons): Mairead Greene
Regional Nurse Lead: Patricia O’Gorman
Regional Clinical Director: Dr. Catherine Peters
Regional Executive Officer: Sandra Broderick
In December 2025, Government agreed to progress with a blend of the proposed HIQA options A, B, and C to respond to the challenges in the Mid West.
Option A relates to expanding capacity at University Hospital Limerick, Dooradoyle. Progress to-date includes the delivery of two 16-bed rapid-build units in 2024 and 2025, the opening of a first 96-bed block in October 2025, construction of a further 16-bed rapid-build unit due for completion by the end of 2026, contracts awarded for the main construction of a second 96-bed block, and a design team appointed for a further 66-bed block.
By 2029, 306 new beds will have been added at UHL since 2023. Across Ennis, St John’s and Nenagh Model 2 hospitals, a further 114 beds are planned by 2031, bringing the total expected additional regional bed capacity to 420 beds.
Option B relates to extending the UHL campus to include an additional site. On 10 March 2026, the HSE acquired a 44-acre site at Raheen, close to the UHL Dooradoyle campus, to support additional capacity and service development for Limerick, Clare and Tipperary.
Option C relates to the development of a wider regional model of care, including the potential for additional Model 3 capacity. The Health Planning Board will oversee the development of a Mid West Service and Infrastructure Plan to determine which services should remain at Dooradoyle, which may be located at Raheen, and which may be more appropriately delivered through Ennis, St John’s or Nenagh hospitals.