The Department of Health  is a departmentof the Government of Ireland. The Department's mission is to "support, protect and empower individuals, families and their communities to achieve their full health potential by putting health at the centre of public policy and by leading the development of high quality, equitable and efficient health and personal social services." The Department is led by the Minister for Health who is assisted by three Ministers of State.

Their role is to serve the public and support the Minister for Health, Ministers of State and the Government by providing:

• -Leadership and policy direction for the health sector to improve health outcomes
• -Governance and performance oversight to ensure accountable and high quality services
• -An organisational environment where, on an ongoing basis, high performance is achieved, collaborative working is valued and the knowledge and skills of staff are developed
• -Collaboration to achieve health priorities and contribute to wider social and economic goals

Their mission is to improve the health and wellbeing of people in Ireland by:

• -Keeping people healthy;
• -Providing the healthcare people need;
• -Delivering high quality services;
• -Getting best value from health system resources.

Their values are:

• -A deep-rooted public service ethos of independence, integrity, impartiality, equality, fairness and respect
• -A culture of accountability, efficiency and value for money
• -The highest standards of professionalism, leadership and rigour