Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 13 June 2023
1192. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Health to indicate the ongoing plans, if any, to have the athletic therapy profession in Ireland regulated, given the ARTI was formed in 2009 and serves as the governing body for certified athletic therapists in Ireland; if athletic therapy can be included within the regulation process with a view to provision of care services within the HSE; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [27762/23]
View answerA number of representative bodies for unregulated professions, including the body representing athletic therapists. have approached the Department seeking to be regulated. It is important in this context to point out the issues to be considered regarding the proportionate degree of regulatory force required to protect the public are complex.
In light of this, and in line with ongoing work in the Department of Health, the Health Research Board was requested to carry out research on behalf of the Department to assist in policy development in this area. The report, “National Approaches to Regulating Health and Social Care Professions”, examines the approaches to the regulation of health and social care professionals internationally and is publicly available on the Department’s website (www.gov.ie/en/publication/ea62b-national-approaches-to-regulating-health-and-social-care-professions/).
My officials are in the process of drawing from this report and other relevant sources to develop a framework to guide policy on the regulation of health and social care professionals into the future. This framework will also be informed by an evidence and risk-based approach to regulation in line with requirements set out in the EU Proportionality Test Directive, which was transposed into Irish law on 19 August 2022 (S.I. No. 413/2022). Further information on the Proportionality Test Directive can be found here: single-market-economy.ec.europa.eu/news/services-directive-handbookproportionality-test-directive-guidance-2022-12-22_en.
It should be noted that there are no plans in place to progress regulation of individual professions until appropriate risk-assessment and evaluation tools are in place in compliance with best practice, international evidence, and the Proportionality Test Directive.
Statutory regulation forms a part of a system of assurance that the Department utilises to mitigate risk posed to the public by the practise of health and social care professions. The public health service employs a mix of regulated and non-regulated professions. Whether a profession is regulated or not is not a determining factor to employment. For example, among the health and social care professions, audiologists, clinical engineers, clinical measurement physiologists, medical physicists, play therapists and play specialists, and perfusionists (amongst others) are some of the non-regulated groups which are currently employed by the HSE.
As demands on the health service evolve, so too will the professions and grades required to deliver services. For a new profession/grade to be established for use by the public health service, the standard way to do this is by way of a strong business case, prepared by the HSE as the employer. The business case is then submitted to the Department for consideration. Professions not employed in the HSE should engage with the HSE and the Department of Health regarding their potential contribution to the provision of care in Ireland.
My officials met with representatives of the professional body for athletic therapy recently to provide an update on the Department’s work on the future policy framework and to reiterate that at present there are no plans to include any further professions in the CORU regulation process.
