New Sláintecare funded Graduate Diploma in Primary Care Nursing Practice Launch

Today, University College Dublin (UCD), with support from the Department of Health, launched the Graduate Diploma in Primary Care Nursing Practice.    

Internationally and in Ireland, healthcare faces major challenges due to the increasing demands resulting from an ageing population and the rise in people living with long-term chronic conditions. Primary care and General Practice is a key part of the solution and is central to effective, high quality, person-centred care addressing the health needs of people and families in the community.  

Primary care nurses are at the forefront of individualised services in General Practice and Public Health Nursing Service. The Graduate Diploma in Primary Care Nursing Practice programme aims to provide formal, structured education and training to equip nurses with knowledge, skills and competencies to work as expert generalists in primary care. In doing this, the programme will help increase the number of nurses working in Primary Care and General Practice.

Commenting on the occasion of the launch, Chief Nursing Officer, Department of Health, Rachel Kenna, welcomed the launch of the programme saying; “I am delighted to see this programme come to fruition and offer postgraduate opportunities to Primary and Community RGNs who are central in the implementation and success of Sláintecare. There is already a positive transformative approach to providing excellence in care that allows people to stay healthy in their homes and communities for as long as possible. This programme will enable the development of career pathways to retain this very valued workforce in our communities.”

Professor Cecily Kelleher, UCD College of Health and Agricultural Sciences Principal, said: “It is a pleasure to witness the collaborative approach UCD, our clinical partners and the Department have had in creating this innovative programme. We have been able to realise our aspirations to provide cutting edge nursing education which has real world impact on the lives of people in our community.”

The Sláintecare Progress Report 2022 was published yesterday, emphasising the highlights and areas of focus. A key area of focus for 2023 is workforce planning, which is the aligned objective of the Sláintecare funding project “UCD Graduate Diploma Primary Care Nursing Practice”. This highlights the Government's commitment to supporting the existing primary care workforce and valuing community nurses' potential to build services from the ground up. 

Muriel Farrell, Sláintecare said: “The shared vision of Sláintecare and Programme for Government is universal healthcare, a public health service which provides the people with access to high quality, affordable care when and where they need it. Nurses and their colleagues are a key element to driving the shared vision for Sláintecare, demonstrating the motivation of frontline staff to show leadership and drive change to improve the patient experience and work to the top of their licence. I am delighted that this post graduate programme, funded through the Sláintecare Integration Innovation Fund, will further support the development of leadership, skills and expertise of nurses and midwives in providing the right care, in the right place at the right time, increasing timely access to care and helping to prevent hospital admission.”

The Graduate Diploma in Primary Care Nursing Practice will launch on a pilot, two year basis, with its first intake of 60 students this September 2023. 

For more information about the programme visit the course page here.