The Health Service Executive has signed a memorandum of understanding with HealthTech Ireland to put a formal structure behind their ongoing collaborations, with the shared aim of enhancing the health and wellbeing of the people of Ireland.

The MoU will see the HSE together with HealthTech experts examine how best to use existing and emerging products and solutions such as AI to improve patient outcomes, increase efficiencies, and meet the challenges faced across the health service.

According to HealthTech Ireland, the MoU articulates that progress will be made through formalised arrangements with representatives from the HSE and representatives from HealthTech Ireland, as the trade association representing industry, including digital health companies in Ireland.

HealthTech Ireland said this was with the purpose of establishing regular, trusted engagement, education and specific initiatives of work, leveraging the knowledge of both parties.

HealthTech Ireland CEO Susan Treacy said that by sharing the international and national experience of member companies with Ireland’s health service, and aligning objectives with the goals of the Department of Health’s digital healthcare framework Digital for Care, and with Sláintecare, it will make a real difference for patients and staff across Ireland.

“Ireland has a thriving health tech sector with 14 of the 15 global companies here and hundreds of start-ups coming out of Enterprise Ireland,” Ms Treacy said.

“We aim to help harness this expertise for the system and patients. This MOU puts a formal structure around the collaboration that was already under way between HealthTech Ireland and the HSE.”

HSE chief technology and transformation officer Damien McCallion said the HSE, HealthTech Ireland and its members are building on years of collaboration and a joint purpose on how to best deliver these technologies and innovations for the benefit of patients.

“Work is already underway with discussions taking place examining how to tackle the challenges facing our health service and this formalised relationship will help drive our Digital for Care strategy even further,” he said.