An external review of the National Maternity Strategy 2016-2026 is due to get underway in the coming months.
A tender notice seeking a provider for the independent evaluation was recently issued by the Department of Health. A final report is expected within 12 weeks of the tender being awarded.
It will ascertain the level of delivery achieved against the strategy’s actions and the factors involved.
The review will also issue recommendations to support the development of the next maternity strategy. The new strategy will be delivered in 2027, the Minister for Health Jennifer Carroll MacNeill has stated.
Another part of the process will be the inclusion of an international literature review highlighting comparisons between the Irish maternity model and relevant comparable countries, including outcomes.
Speaking in response to a parliamentary question (PQ) by Labour Party Deputy Duncan Smith in June, Minister Carroll MacNeill said that over 98 per cent of the strategy’s actions were complete or in progress.
“The Government is committed to ensuring maternity services are providing safe, nationally consistent, woman-centred care. Since the launch of the national maternity strategy in 2016, maternity services have been transformed through the progressive implementation of all 77 recommendations, and the 236 associated actions. Work is ongoing to ensure full completion of the strategy in 2026,” the Minister outlined.
This year, the joint Oireachtas committee on health has met with several groups, including the HSE, Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation and the Pregnancy Loss Research Group, to address issues relating to the current strategy and its implementation.
The matters raised in these meetings included the need for greater dedicated investment to fully implement the strategy’s recommendations and for continued improvements.
A Department spokesperson told the Medical Independent that €28 million in development funding had been invested in the strategy since 2016. This funding has supported the recruitment of over 567 additional whole-time equivalent staff, including 44 consultants and over 380 nurses and midwives.
“The Government remains committed to the continued improvement of maternity services, including the development of a successor national maternity strategy, as set out in the Programme for Government,” the spokesperson stated.
The spokesperson added that the HSE National Women and Infants Health Programme is completing a review of the implementation of the strategy, including engagement with staff across maternity services.
This review, together with findings from the National Maternity Experience Survey 2025, will inform the independent external evaluation of the strategy, the spokesperson said.
“The independent evaluation will provide evidence-based recommendations to support the future development of maternity services and the next national maternity strategy. A tender for this review was published on 13 July 2026, and the evaluation is expected to conclude before year-end.”
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