Rolling work plan
The Patient Forum is a platform for dialogue and exchange on topics relevant to patients regarding the regulation of medicines and medical devices. The HPRA established the forum to give patients in Ireland a voice in the regulatory process, especially in areas of patient safety, licensing, and use, and how the Authority communicates with wider society.
The forum is based on a partnership approach to empower patients so their experience and perspectives are heard, acknowledged, and actioned. This approach aims to bring about positive improvements in the regulation of health products.
As set out in the Terms of Reference for the forum, members will work with the HPRA to prepare an annual rolling work plan. The plan will include topics aligned with the purpose of the forum. Agreed topics will also be of common interest to both patients and the HPRA.
The work plan will be kept under review. It will be updated as needed based on progress against agreed actions.
Members of the forum and the HPRA discussed the work plan for 2026 at a meeting on 16 December 2025. The work plan was later agreed at a meeting on 31 March 2026.
Topics for 2026
The focus for 2026 is to continue to deepen the engagement between the HPRA and forum members. The forum will continue work on topics from the 2025 workplan and explore new topics identified as a priority.
As part of the rolling work plan for 2026, the Patient Forum will:
- Prepare an annual report to the Authority on the work of the patient forum in 2025.
- Continue the review as per section 4.5 of the terms of reference concerning membership, including the diversity and inclusivity of representation of the forum. Relevant entities will be consulted to strengthen an inclusive approach within the forum.
- Hold a patient speaker programme event for HPRA employees, building upon the success of previous events. Through this initiative, patient community representatives are invited to speak to HPRA employees and share first-hand accounts of their experiences and challenges. It ensures that the views and values of patients in Ireland are central to the HPRA's regulatory work.
- The Pharmaceutical Society of Ireland (PSI) will deliver a dedicated meeting to discuss topics such as stakeholder feedback on embedding a patient-centred approach across its regulatory processes, further engagement on the safe and effective (expanded) provision of pharmacy services and expanding the PSI's publicly available information on its website.
- Discuss breakthrough technologies and direct-to-consumer tests in the context of medical devices.
- Provide members with an overview of the HPRA's role in regulating cosmetic products.
- HPRA will provide an overview of the National Clinical Trials Oversight Group recommendations, aimed at increasing the number of clinical trials conducted in Ireland.
- Exploring with the patient forum how the HPRA can better engage and communicate with patients on issues of medicine and medical device safety.
Download the 2026 rolling work plan of the HPRA Patient Forum in full on the link below. The workplans for 2025 and 2024 are also available to view.