Minister for Health, Stephen Donnelly TD, has announced the approval of the Health Service Executive’s Capital Plan for 2022, which outlines the strategic priorities for the Health Investment Programme.

The 2022 Capital Plan reiterates the Government’s commitment to investing in our health and social care service. The plan builds on Minister Donnelly’s core priorities of access, affordability and quality in healthcare by supporting the delivery of strategic reform, a move towards better care in the community and building on the learnings and innovative changes during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The health capital funding available in 2022 is €1.02bn, an increase of 4% on 2021. This investment will enable the HSE to progress projects in 2022, including Government priority programmes and major capital projects of elective care centres in Dublin, Cork and Galway as well as investment in primary and community care settings.

Capital investment has a critical role to play in enabling and enhancing service provision, and to drive the reforms of universal healthcare, set out in Sláintecare. This includes investment to facilitate reorienting the model of care away from acute hospitals and towards primary and community settings and addressing capacity and infrastructural deficits that exist in the system.

Minister Donnelly said: “I am delighted to approve the HSE Capital Plan 2022. This is a plan that demonstrates the government’s commitment to investing in Ireland’s healthcare infrastructure and to and support the move towards universal healthcare.

“The health investment programme is focused on the delivery of a quality health and social care service across the country within the context of climate action. This plan continues to progress the construction of new builds, the replacement and upgrade of ageing infrastructure and continuing to focus on providing healthcare in the community.”

The Capital Plan provides for the spending of €1.02bn on health capital projects across the country in 2022 and includes:

• New Children’s Hospital
• Acute hospital projects including additional capacity, critical care capacity and maternity services
• Primary care programme includes the building and equipping of centres across the country
• HIQA Programme for community nursing units includes refurbishment to HIQA standard of units throughout the country
• Disability includes the continuation of the decongregation programme, respite and day services facilities
• Mental health facilities including CAMHS units and acute mental health units across the country
• Accommodation for Enhanced Community Care
• Investment in trauma and rehabilitation projects
• Investment in equipment replacement and infrastructural risk
• Investment in climate action and sustainability projects
• Replacement ambulance programme and ambulance bases renovation