Population Health and Health Services Research

Population Health and Health Services Research underpin health and wellbeing, and are essential for disease prevention, intervention and survivorship. 

High quality and relevant population health and health services research (PH&HSR) is vital to the delivery of real impact on people’s health and health care. PH&HSR addresses the five health challenges central by identifying individual and population health determinants, measuring behavioural and socioeconomic risk factors, and investigating the quality, cost and effectiveness of health care provision.

Nationally, there is an identified need for high-impact, knowledge-generating research dedicated to PH&HSR, as iterated by the current HRB Strategic Plan. In addition, Ireland is committed, in line with international health policy, to moving healthcare to the community with a significant expansion of primary care services (Sláintecare Action Plan, 2019).

International research programmes such as Horizon Europe and Wellcome Trust, prioritise interdisciplinary programmes which widen public participation in research and translate to tangible impacts on physical and mental health outcomes.

Where we are distinctive:

We excel in this area not least because of the cross-College expertise provided by:

• Population Health Research Institute (PHRI)
• WHO Collaborating Centre for Health Promotion Research Centre (HPRC)
• HRB-Clinical Research Facility Galway
• HRB Primary Care Clinical Trials Network Ireland
• HRB Trials Methodology Research Network
• HRB Health Behaviour Change Research Group (HBCRG)
• Evidence Synthesis Ireland
• Cochrane Ireland
• PPI Ignite
• Health Economics and Policy Analysis (HEPA)
• mHealth Research Group
• National Institute for Prevention and Cardiovascular Health (NIPC)

PH&HSR has informed international clinical guidelines, e.g. WHO antenatal care; WHO management of postpartum haemorrhage; American Heart Association (AHA) guidelines on aspirin of cardiovascular disease prevention and risk factors for stroke; and the British Association for Cardiovascular Prevention and Rehabilitation guidelines for psychosocial interventions for cardiac rehabilitation. Researchers have contributed significantly to the public health response during the COVID-19 pandemic, e.g. guidelines for the management of diabetes during COVID-19 and advising on the behavioural aspects of the Public Health response. Closer to home, PH&HSR directly influences the delivery of health care, e.g. five grants totalling €1.9million have been awarded to NUI Galway under the Sláintecare Integration Fund for chronic disease prevention programmes.