In this week’s episode of Disability Matters, host John Comiskey sits down with Fiona O’Driscoll, Regional Patient and Service User Engagement Lead for the HSE Dublin & North East. In an insightful conversation, Fiona explains how the HSE is reshaping healthcare by placing patients, service users, carers, and advocacy organisations at the centre of decision-making.
Her work marks a new chapter for the Irish health system — one grounded in partnership, lived experience, and inclusive service design.
From Hospital Wards to System Change: Fiona’s Journey Back to the HSE
Fiona’s pathway into this leadership role began in clinical practice. She trained as a doctor and completed her intern year at Connolly Hospital in Blanchardstown before moving to London, where she spent four years at Imperial College London and St Mary’s Hospital.
There, her work focused on health inequities — identifying communities whose outcomes were consistently poorer and partnering with them to co-design better services. These included:
• people living in deprived areas
• people with sight loss
• people with learning disabilities
• groups historically underserved by the healthcare system
The emphasis was always the same:
Listen first. Design together. Improve outcomes.
Returning to Ireland in 2025, Fiona stepped into a newly created HSE role designed to embed this collaborative approach across the Dublin & North East region.
A New Role for a New Health System
As Regional Patient and Service User Engagement Lead, Fiona’s core mission is to champion partnership at every level of service design and delivery. That means involving:
• patients
• service users
• carers
• family members
• disability organisations
• community groups
• advocacy networks
Her goal is to ensure that the voices of people who use the health service directly shape how it evolves.
A central pillar of this vision is the creation of a Regional Patient and Service User Council, a diverse advisory group that will feed into senior HSE leadership. The council will include members from across Dublin, Louth, Meath, Cavan, and Monaghan.
“It’s about making sure people can influence the decisions that affect them,” Fiona explains.
A National Vision: Partnership Across All Six Health Regions
Fiona’s work is part of a wider national reform. As the HSE restructures into six regional health areas, each region will establish its own patient and service user council — a major step toward more localised, responsive services.
This is supported by a forthcoming national strategy on patient and service user experience, expected in 2026.
“It’s an exciting time,” Fiona says. “There is a strong national commitment to partnership — not just as a concept, but as a way of working.”
What Are the Challenges? Listening to Real Experiences
Fiona is deeply engaged with community groups, advocacy networks, and patient representatives across the region. One of her early steps was meeting with BCIL’s Peer Support Group — an experience she describes as invaluable.
Members shared real challenges they face, including:
• accessibility barriers around transport
• difficulties attending hospital appointments
• challenges using digital health tools like the HSE app
• fragmented communication between services
Fiona brought this feedback directly back to HSE teams working in digital transformation, integrated care, and service delivery.
“This is why partnership matters,” she says. “Feedback from lived experience can inform practical improvements right away.”
Supporting an Ageing Population
Ireland’s rapidly ageing population presents complex challenges, from mobility needs to long-term support. Fiona stresses the importance of ensuring that older adults are represented within the new regional council.
She highlights the strong collaboration already happening through:
• Older Persons Councils
• the Age Friendly Alliance
• integrated care for older persons programmes
Ensuring these voices are part of strategic planning is, she says, “absolutely essential.”
Disability Inclusion at the Centre
Fiona is particularly committed to ensuring the participation of disabled people and their representative organisations.
“Disabled people must be at the decision-making table,” she emphasises.
This includes partnerships with Disabled Persons Organisations (DPOs), groups like BCIL, and others who bring both expertise and lived experience.
The regional council will include members with diverse disabilities, needs, and backgrounds.
Digital Transformation: Will the System Ever Be Fully Connected?
One of the recurring concerns Fiona hears is the lack of full digital integration across hospitals and services.
She agrees that this is a major issue — and a national priority.
“We need joined-up care,” she says. “Digital systems are key to that, and it’s the direction we are moving in.”
The goal is a system where information flows smoothly between acute hospitals, community services, and primary care teams.
Addressing Long-Term Health Inequalities
Improving health outcomes is complex work influenced by broader social determinants — housing, transport, education, work conditions.
“These issues take years to change,” Fiona acknowledges.
“But by working across sectors and listening to communities, we can start moving in the right direction.”
A Welcome Response: People Want to Be Involved
One of the most encouraging aspects of Fiona’s work has been the enthusiasm from communities.
“No one has said they don’t want to engage,” she shares. “People want to contribute. People want to be heard.”
This collective energy gives her confidence that the new regional engagement structures will make a meaningful difference.
Looking Ahead: A Long-Term Commitment
There is no set time limit on this transformation.
Instead, Fiona describes it as an evolving journey.
With a national strategy launching in 2026 and regional structures forming now, the coming years will be critical in embedding a culture of partnership across Ireland’s health system.
“It’s progressive, it’s exciting, and it’s necessary,” she says.
A Final Message
Fiona ends with a message of appreciation — for patients, families, advocacy groups, and every person who shares their story.
“Partnership works when we work together. And that’s exactly what we’re building.”
This interview aired on Disability Matters with John Comiskey on 92.5 Phoenix FM, a programme produced by Blanchardstown Centre for Independent Living (BCIL).
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