Department of Health, Social Services and Public Safety (Northern Ireland)

The Department of Health, Social Services and Public Safety is one of 11 Northern Ireland Departments created in 1999 as part of the Northern Ireland Executive by the Northern Ireland Act 1998 and the Departments (Northern Ireland) Order 1999.

The Department aims to improve the health and social wellbeing of the people of Northern Ireland. It endeavours to do so by:

Leading a major programme of cross-government action to improve the health and wellbeing of the population and reduce health inequalities. This includes interventions involving health promotion and education to encourage people to adopt activities, behaviours and attitudes which lead to better health and wellbeing. The aim is a population which is much more engaged in ensuring its own health and wellbeing; and

Ensuring the provision of appropriate health and social care services, both in clinical settings such as hospitals and GP surgeries, and in the community through nursing, social work and other professional services.

The Department has three main business responsibilities:

• Health and Social Care (HSC), which includes policy and legislation for hospitals, family practitioner services and community health and personal social services.
• Public Health, which covers policy, legislation and administrative action to promote and protect the health and well-being of the population.
• Public Safety, which covers policy and legislation for fire and rescue services.