Thursday 8th April
This session examines the impact of the recession on health delivery and health outcomes in Ireland. Speakers will discuss not only the professional challenges faced by Doctors in Ireland, but just how much the recession has and will continue to impact on the health of the Irish population. Finally, the session will conclude with a look at the socio-economic determinants of health and asks are more equal societies healthier?

Practicing Medicine with Reduced Resources
Dr Ronan Boland is a graduate of University College Cork. He trained as a General Practitioner on the Cork Vocational Training Scheme. After spells working as a GP in Cavan and Westmeath he was appointed in 1995 to take over the care of a large medical card panel of patients in the Northside of Cork City, where he still practices. He has served as a representative of the Irish Medical Organisation for many years and has served as the Chair of its GP Committee for the last two years.

Mapping the Impact of Recession

Charles Normand is Edward Kennedy Professor of Health Policy and Management at Trinity College Dublin. He is also on the Board of St James’s Hospital and is Chair of the WHO European Observatory on Health Systems and Policy. He trained as an economist, and has worked for 25 years on the economics of health and health care.

He has a particular interest in understanding the ways in which ageing impacts on use of health and social care, and on financing of services for older people. His research is mainly on health care finance, equity and access to services, management of chronic diseases, screening policies and end of life care. He is an author of a leading textbook on health economics and the WHO guidebook on social health insurance.

Are More Equal Societies Healthier?

In 1998 Jane Wilde was appointed Chief Executive of the Institute of Public Health in Ireland (IPH) which aims to promote cooperation between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland in research and information, capacity building and policy advice. Its focus is on health inequalities and building links between research and policy.

Jane is a consultant in public health with over 30 years experience. Her experience has focused on public health policy, particularly prevention of NCDs, social determinants of health and action to tackle health inequalities. She has contributed to a wide range of cross government committees ranging from housing, agriculture and food safety to consumer affairs and poverty. She co-directed the WHO CINDI chronic disease prevention programme and initiated the WHO Healthy Cities Programme in Belfast.

Jane is committed to all-Ireland and international working and has a long term commitment to action to promote health equity. She is an honorary professor at QUB and visiting professor at the University of Ulster. In 1997 she was awarded the annual Alwyn Smith medal by the Faculty of Public Health (UK) and in 2007 she was awarded the CBE for services to public health.