The National End of Life Survey is a nationwide survey asking bereaved people about the care provided to their relatives and friends in the last months and days of their life. The purpose of the survey is to learn from people’s experiences of end-of-life care in order to improve the services provided both to people who are dying, and to their loved ones.
The National End of Life Survey is part of the National Care Experience Programme — a partnership between the Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA), the Health Service Executive (HSE) and the Department of Health.
Individuals who registered the death of a family member or friend that occurred between 1 September and 31 December 2022, were invited to participate in the survey and received a survey pack in the post between March and May 2023.
The National End of Life Survey asked bereaved relatives about the end-of-life care provided to their loved ones in hospitals, hospices, nursing homes and the home. Sudden, maternal and child deaths were not included in the survey, as the care pathways in these circumstances are different.
The survey took place between March and July 2023.
The survey includes questions on pain management, respect and dignity, emotional support, communication with healthcare staff and the provision of information.
All responses to the National End of Life Survey will be anonymised, analysed and combined to produce a report on the quality of care provided at end of life in Ireland. The findings of the survey will be used to introduce improvements at both local and national levels.
You can see the results for 2023 here.
Yes. Your answers are processed in strict confidence and kept separate from your contact details. Anonymised responses are retained solely for analysis; they are not given to commercial entities or used for commercial purposes.
Yes. The National End of Life Survey complies with data protection laws including the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and Data Protection Act 2018. Your contact details are used for the sole purpose of sending you the survey. Further details can be found here.
Irish Hospice Foundation
The HSE, in partnership with the Irish Hospice Foundation, provides a helpline to support people who have experienced the death of a family member or friend. You can call this Freephone service on 1800 80 70 77 to talk to a bereavement support volunteer or access support through the website www.bereaved.ie. The Freephone service is available from 10am to 1pm, Monday to Friday.
Samaritans
Samaritans provide emotional support for anyone who is struggling to cope or needs someone to listen to them without judgement or pressure. You can contact Samaritans 24 hours a day, 7 days a week on Freephone 116 123 or by emailing jo@samaritans.ie. For more information, please visit www.samaritans.ie .
More information is available on our website yourexperience.ie. You can also ring our Freephone number on 1800 314093 (Monday – Friday, 9am – 5pm), email us at info@yourexperience.ie, or write to us at:
The National End of Life Survey
c/o Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA)
George’s Court, George’s Lane
Dublin 7/D07 E98Y
The National Inpatient Experience Survey is a nationwide survey asking patients about their recent experiences in hospital. If you are discharged from hospital in May 2026, you may receive an invitation by SMS text message from CareSurvey or in the post, to take part in the survey.
Your views are very important to us. Your views and experiences provide the National Care Experience Programme with insights into experiences across Ireland’s acute hospitals. The survey results are used to improve care by finding out what we are doing well and where improvements are necessary.
The National Care Experience Programme is implementing the survey. The Programme is a share initiative between the Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA), the Health Service Executive (HSE), the Mental Health Commission (MHC) and the Department of Health.
Anyone aged 16 and over, who has spent a minimum of 24 hours in a public hospital, was discharged in May 2026 and has a mobile phone number and an address in the Republic of Ireland will be asked to complete the survey.
The survey can be completed in English, Irish, Polish and Ukrainian. FAQs are also available in Polish and Ukrainian.
If you are eligible, you will be invited to take part in the survey a few weeks after you leave the hospital. You can take part online or by post.
If you would like to complete the survey in Irish, Polish or Ukrainian, you can use the drop-down option in the text message link to change the language of the survey, or to receive a paper copy of the survey, please contact us by emailing info@yourexperience.ie or calling our Freephone number on 1800 314093 (Monday-Friday, 9am-5pm).
Your contact details were provided by your hospital to enable us to send you the survey. They will be deleted as soon as the survey is complete.
All survey responses will be combined to produce reports on patients’ experiences of hospital care in Ireland, which will be made publicly available on www.yourexperience.ie. The results of previous surveys and the quality improvement actions arising from them can also be found on our website.
Yes. Your answers will be processed in strict confidence and kept separate from your contact details. The hospitals that provided you with hospital care will be provided with anonymous responses only.
A patient safety incident is an event or circumstance that could have resulted, or did result, in unnecessary injury or harm to you or put you at risk of injury or harm.
The survey asks about patient safety incidents. If you experienced a patient safety incident and wish to report it and receive a response, you should contact the hospital where the incident occurred. Details of how to make a complaint about a HSE service can be found on the HSE website.
Yes. The National Inpatient Experience Survey complies with data protection laws including the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). Further details can be found on www.yourexperience.ie.
Yes, please do! If you received good quality care in hospital you can use the survey to tell us about your positive experience.
Yes, a family member or friend may help you to fill in the survey, but please remember that the answers should only be about your experiences of hospital care.
The survey asks questions about your admission to hospital, the ward environment, your care and treatment, interaction with staff and your discharge from hospital.
Participation in the survey is voluntary. While it is important for us to hear about your experience, it is possible to opt out of the survey.
If you do not want to take part in this survey and would prefer not to receive further information about it, you can opt out by:
Yes, you can see the results of the survey. There is a freely available dashboard available on our website. The dashboard shows survey findings since 2017. If you require certain data, you can send a data access request form, which is also available on our website. The quality improvement actions arising from them can also be found on our website.
More information is available on our Inpatient Survey section. You can also call our Freephone number on 1800 314093 or email us at info@yourexperience.ie.
The National Mental Health Experience Survey is a nationwide survey asking people about their recent experiences of inpatient mental health care. Anyone who is discharged during the survey sampling period will later receive an invitation in the post to take part. The findings will help identify what is working well and what can be improved in inpatient mental health care across Ireland.
This survey is being carried out by the National Care Experience Programme (NCEP), on behalf of the Department of Health, Mental Health Commission, and Health Service Executive. We want to hear about the care you received during your recent admission. What you tell us will help to improve and shape mental health care for others in Ireland.
Anyone aged 18 and over who is discharged from a participating inpatient mental health unit or hospital during the survey period and has an address in the Republic of Ireland, will be invited to complete the survey.
A few months after discharge from an inpatient mental health unit or hospital, you will receive an invitation by post to participate in the survey. You can take part in the survey by:
If you would like to complete the survey in a language other than English, you can contact the survey team by emailing info@yourexperience.ie or calling our Freephone number on 1800 314093 (Monday-Friday, 9am-5pm). You can find more information at www.yourexperience.ie.
The survey asks questions about your experience of inpatient mental health care and services in Ireland, from your admission to the unit or hospital through to your discharge and follow-up care.
All survey responses will be anonymised and combined to produce reports on people’s experiences of inpatient mental health care in Ireland, which will be made publicly available.
Survey responses will also be used for other analysis, including:
The data will not be given to commercial bodies or used for commercial purposes.
Yes. Your answers will be treated in the strictest confidence. Your contact details will be separated from your survey responses, and your responses will be combined with the responses of other participants. This means that it will not be possible to identify any individual person in the reports that are made available to healthcare services or to the public.
This survey invites you to tell us about your recent experience in an inpatient mental health unit or hospital in Ireland. Your responses will provide important information on the standard of services and help us to identify where improvements are necessary. We want to hear about and learn from all experiences of care. If you or someone you know is invited to take part, please consider sharing your experience to help improve and shape inpatient mental health care across Ireland.
Taking part in the survey is voluntary. While it is important for us to hear about all experiences, if you would prefer not to receive further information about the survey, you can follow any of the steps outlined below:
Yes, you are welcome to ask a family member or friend to help you. Please make sure the answers given are about your own experience of care.
Yes. The survey complies with data protection laws, including the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). All contact data collected for this survey, will only be used to administer this survey and then destroyed.
All personal data will be stored securely and retained in accordance with data protection law. The legal basis for processing is Article 6(1)(e) of the GDPR. To find out more about data protection and the survey, visit www.yourexperience.ie/privacy-notice/.
You can access support:
More information is available on our Mental Health Survey section here.
You can also call our Freephone number on 1800 314093, email us at info@yourexperience.ie or write to us at:
The National Mental Health Experience Survey
C/o Health Information and Quality Authority
Unit 1301, City Gate, Mahon, Cork, T12 Y2XT
The National Cancer Care Experience Survey is a nationwide survey asking people who have received cancer care about their experiences in hospital. The aim is to learn from their feedback and improve cancer services in Ireland.
The survey is being run by The National Care Experience Programme. This is a shared initiative between the Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA), the Health Service Executive (HSE), the Mental Health Commission (MHC) and the Department of Health, with support of the National Cancer Control Programme (NCCP). We use different ways to understand people’s experiences, including surveys and group discussions. Our findings are used to improve health and social care services.
Anyone aged 16 years or over who received cancer care as an inpatient or day-case, between October and December 2026.
The invitation to take part will be sent by text message (SMS) and by post.
The survey will take place in 2027. Eligible participants will receive a survey invitation in June 2027.
Your answers will help us to understand people’s experiences of cancer care in Ireland. They will show what is working well in hospitals and to help make cancer services better for future patients.
Your contact details were provided by your hospital to enable us to send you the survey. They will be deleted as soon as the survey is complete.
The survey asks about every stage of your care, from receiving your diagnosis to living with and beyond cancer.
Reports will be created about patients’ experiences of cancer care in Ireland and shared on our website. All answers are anonymous – Your answers won’t include your name or anything that identifies you and your responses can’t be linked back to you.
The results will help the HSE to develop quality-improvement plans and making plans to improve patient care and cancer services.
Anonymous survey answers will be kept and may be used for further research. The information may also be used to understand differences in people’s experiences and how we can improve care for everyone.
Yes. The National Cancer Care Experience Survey complies with data protection laws including the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). Further details can be found on https://yourexperience.ie/about/information-governance/.
Yes. Your answers will be processed in strict confidence. Any identifying information will be removed before any data is shared.
Taking part in the survey is your choice. It will not affect the care you receive now or in the future. If you do not want to take part, you can choose not to complete the survey.
More information is available on the Cancer Care Survey section of our website. While it is important for us to hear about your experience, it is possible to opt out of the survey.
When you receive your invitation to take part, you can opt out by:
Our Freephone helpline number is open from Monday to Friday, 9am – 5pm.
Yes, you will be able to view the survey results through written reports and an interactive dashboard when they have been published on our website. Quality improvement plans will be developed in response to the survey findings and other engagement activities will also be made available.
The National Care Experience Programme datasets are initially pseudonymised — the National Care Experience Programme contact datasets used to carry out surveys are stored separately to survey responses. A survey code is assigned to each participant to manage responses and avoid matching survey participants’ personal information with their responses. Six weeks after the survey closes, the survey responses are fully anonymised, the contact details are deleted and the hard-copy responses are destroyed (two months after the survey closes).
In advance of anonymisation, a participant may fill in a subject access request form to receive their survey responses. Following anonymisation, requests for responses are no longer be possible. For more information on making a request please see our website.
If you or your loved one has been impacted by the National Cancer Care Experience Survey, your local cancer support centre and the Irish Cancer Society can provide information and emotional support:
Yes, a family member or friend may help you to fill in the survey, but please remember that the answers should only be about your experiences of cancer care.
A patient safety incident is an event or circumstance that could have resulted, or did result, in unnecessary injury or harm to you or put you at risk of injury or harm.
The survey asks about these types of experiences. If you experienced a patient safety incident and want to report it, you should contact the hospital where the incident occurred. Details of how to make a complaint about a HSE service can be found on the HSE website.
If you received a survey invitation that is intended for a friend, family member or someone you care for, you may help them to complete the survey. Please answer the questions based on their experiences and views.
If this does not apply to you, please contact our Freephone helpline 1800 314 093 or email us at info@yourexperience.ie.
If you haven’t been diagnosed with cancer, but received a survey invitation, we apologise for contacting you. Please contact us on the Freephone helpline on 1800 314 093 or email us at info@yourexperience.ie.
You may not have been contacted for several reasons such as:
The National Maternity Experience Survey is a nationwide survey asking women who have recently given birth about the maternity care they received. The purpose of the survey is to learn from the experiences of women to improve the safety and quality of Ireland’s maternity services.
The National Maternity Experience Survey is part of the National Care Experience Programme — a partnership between the Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA), the Health Service Executive (HSE) and the Department of Health. Read more about who we are.
Women aged 16 or over who gave birth in February or March 2025 and had a mobile telephone number were invited to participate in the National Maternity Experience Survey. Women received their invitations to take part approximately three months after they gave birth, between May and June 2025. The survey closed on 18 July.
Pregnancy loss was not included in the survey, as the care pathways in these circumstances are different. Women who experience pregnancy loss, stillbirths and neonatal deaths may be invited to participate in the next National Maternity Bereavement Experience Survey.
The survey asked about experiences of care during pregnancy, during labour and birth, and care after giving birth.
All responses to the National Maternity Experience Survey were anonymised, analysed and combined to produce a report on the quality of maternity care in Ireland. The HSE will use the findings of the survey to introduce improvements at local and national levels. The final survey report will be available on www.yourexperience.ie. You can sign up here to be notified when the results are available.
Yes. Your answers were processed in strict confidence and kept separately from your contact details. Your hospital or home birth service see anonymous responses only.
Once anonymised, survey responses are retained for additional analysis. The data will also be used to compare, with the aim of improving, the experiences of different communities in Ireland based on the sociodemographic conditions of the areas where participants live. The data may be analysed by health service researchers under agreed conditions. Data will not be shared with commercial entities or used for commercial purposes.
Yes. The National Maternity Experience Survey complies with data protection laws including the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). Your information, such as your name, contact details and age were used to invite you to take part in the survey. No information about your medical history were used to carry out the survey. Further details can be found on www.yourexperience.ie.
Your name and address were provided by your hospital or home birth service to enable us to send you an invitation to participate in the survey. Your contact details will be deleted as soon as the survey has ended.
More information is available on our Maternity survey section. You can also call our Freephone number on 1800 314093, email us at info@yourexperience.ie or write to us at:
The National Maternity Experience Survey
c/o Health Information and Quality Authority
George’s Court
George’s Lane
Dublin 7
D07 E98Y
The National Maternity Experience Survey included questions on the full pathway of maternity care, from antenatal care, through labour and birth, to postnatal care in the community. As a GP, you may treat a woman who participated in the survey. To get a notification when the results of the survey are published, sign up here.
The National Maternity Experience Survey included questions on the full pathway of maternity care, from antenatal care, through labour and birth, to postnatal care in the community. As a public health nurse, you may treat a woman who participated in the survey. To get a notification when the results of the survey are published, sign up here.
The National Maternity Bereavement Experience Survey captures the experiences of bereaved women and their partners following a second trimester miscarriage, a stillborn infant or the early neonatal death of a baby.
The purpose of the survey is to learn about the bereavement care provided in Ireland’s maternity units and hospitals in order to improve the safety and quality of Ireland’s maternity bereavement services.
The survey is being carried out by the National Care Experience Programme (NCEP). The NCEP is a partnership between the Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA), the Health Service Executive (HSE) and the Department of Health.
In any one survey it is very difficult to capture all experiences therefore it is important to have a clear scope so the questions in the survey are relevant. Based on engagement it was agreed to define the scope for this survey as women and their partners who experienced a second trimester miscarriage (from 14 weeks of pregnancy), the stillbirth of a baby or the early neonatal death of a baby in one of Ireland’s 19 maternity units or hospitals between 1 January 2019 and 31 December 2021. In order to complete the survey, participants must have been 16 years or older at the time of their loss.
No. Early pregnancy loss includes early miscarriages (<12 weeks gestation) Early miscarriage generally refers to pregnancy loss before 12 weeks of pregnancy., molar pregnancy Molar pregnancy is a non-viable pregnancy that involves the development of abnormal cells in the
womb. and ectopic pregnancyEctopic pregnancy is a pregnancy that develops outside the womb..
Women who experience early pregnancy loss in many cases are cared for in outpatient or general practice (GP) settings, many do not require admission to hospital for care. Some women with first trimester miscarriage do not interact with healthcare services at all.
Considering the differences in care settings, contact with healthcare services and treatment options, women’s maternity care experiences of early pregnancy loss are different to women who experience 2nd trimester miscarriage and perinatal loss.
To understand women and their partners experiences of care following early pregnancy loss would require a survey questionnaire with questions specific and relevant to their care needs as well as the services provided.
The results of the National Maternity Bereavement Experience Survey are published on our website.
The survey asked about experiences of maternity bereavement care, including:
The survey also included a number of free text questions where you could provide additional information about your experiences.
There was an individual section in the questionnaire that can be completed by the partner who has supported you during your care and pregnancy loss.
All responses to the survey will be anonymised, combined and analysed. A report on the findings of the survey will be available in 2023 on http://www.yourexperience.ie. The HSE will use the findings of the survey to introduce improvements to maternity bereavement care.
You can sign up hereto be notified when the results are available.
Yes. The survey is completely confidential and anonymous and no identifying information about you will be collected. All answers will be processed in strict confidence. Maternity hospitals and units will be provided with anonymous responses only. Survey answers will solely be used to analyse and report on maternity bereavement care; they will not be shared with commercial entities or used for commercial purposes. Anonymised data from the survey may be analysed in the future by health service researchers under agreed conditions.
Yes. The National Maternity Bereavement Experience Survey complies with data protection laws including the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and Data Protection Act 2018. Further details can be found on www.yourexperience.ie.
If you are impacted by any issues with regard to maternity bereavement and would like information or support, or if you would like to provide feedback on your experience of maternity bereavement care, you can do so by contacting the Patient Advocacy Service on 0818 293 003 or at info@patientadvocacyservice.ie.
More information is available on our website www.yourexperience.ie. You can also ring our Freephone number on 1800 314 093 (Monday – Friday, 9am – 5pm), email us at info@yourexperience.ie or write to us at:
The National Maternity Bereavement Experience Survey
c/o Health Information and Quality Authority
George’s Court,
George’s Lane,
Dublin 7,
D07 E98Y
The National End of Life Survey is a nationwide survey asking bereaved people about the care provided to their relatives and friends in the last months and days of their life. The purpose of the survey is to learn from people’s experiences of end-of-life care in order to improve the services provided both to people who are dying, and to their loved ones.
The National End of Life Survey is part of the National Care Experience Programme — a partnership between the Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA), the Health Service Executive (HSE) and the Department of Health.
Individuals who registered the death of a family member or friend that occurred between 1 September and 31 December 2022, were invited to participate in the survey and received a survey pack in the post between March and May 2023.
The National End of Life Survey asked bereaved relatives about the end-of-life care provided to their loved ones in hospitals, hospices, nursing homes and the home. Sudden, maternal and child deaths were not included in the survey, as the care pathways in these circumstances are different.
The survey took place between March and July 2023.
The survey includes questions on pain management, respect and dignity, emotional support, communication with healthcare staff and the provision of information.
All responses to the National End of Life Survey will be anonymised, analysed and combined to produce a report on the quality of care provided at end of life in Ireland. The findings of the survey will be used to introduce improvements at both local and national levels.
You can see the results for 2023 here.
Yes. Your answers are processed in strict confidence and kept separate from your contact details. Anonymised responses are retained solely for analysis; they are not given to commercial entities or used for commercial purposes.
Yes. The National End of Life Survey complies with data protection laws including the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and Data Protection Act 2018. Your contact details are used for the sole purpose of sending you the survey. Further details can be found here.
Irish Hospice Foundation
The HSE, in partnership with the Irish Hospice Foundation, provides a helpline to support people who have experienced the death of a family member or friend. You can call this Freephone service on 1800 80 70 77 to talk to a bereavement support volunteer or access support through the website www.bereaved.ie. The Freephone service is available from 10am to 1pm, Monday to Friday.
Samaritans
Samaritans provide emotional support for anyone who is struggling to cope or needs someone to listen to them without judgement or pressure. You can contact Samaritans 24 hours a day, 7 days a week on Freephone 116 123 or by emailing jo@samaritans.ie. For more information, please visit www.samaritans.ie .
More information is available on our website yourexperience.ie. You can also ring our Freephone number on 1800 314093 (Monday – Friday, 9am – 5pm), email us at info@yourexperience.ie, or write to us at:
The National End of Life Survey
c/o Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA)
George’s Court, George’s Lane
Dublin 7/D07 E98Y
The National Nursing Home Experience Survey is a new survey of nursing home care in Ireland. The survey asks nursing home residents and their loved ones about their experiences in order to improve the safety and quality of nursing home care.
The National Nursing Home Experience Survey is part of the National Care Experience Programme — a partnership between the Heath Information and Quality Authority (HIQA), the Health Service Executive (HSE) and the Department of Health.
A selection of nursing homes, representative of the entire population of nursing homes in Ireland, was selected to participate in the survey.
People who lived in participating nursing homes at the time of the survey, and one family member or friend (a designated representative) of each resident, were invited to take part in the survey.
The survey took place between March and May 2022.
The results of the National Nursing Home Experience Survey are published on our website.
You can view the survey questionnaires on our website:
All responses to the National Nursing Home Experience Survey will be anonymised, analysed and combined to produce a report on the quality of care provided in Irish nursing homes. The findings of the survey will be used to introduce improvements at both local and national levels.
You can sign up here to be notified when the results are available.
Yes. Your answers will be processed in strict confidence and kept separately from your contact details. Your answers will solely be used to analyse and report on nursing home care. Anonymised data from the National Nursing Home Experience Survey may be used for secondary analysis in the future by health service researchers under agreed conditions. They will not be shared with commercial entities or used for commercial purposes.
Yes. The National Nursing Home Experience Survey complies with data protection laws, including the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and Data Protection Act 2018. Your contact details will be used for the sole purpose of inviting you to take part in the survey. Further details can be found at www.yourexperience.ie.
More information is available on our nursing home survey section
Freephone
1800 314 093
Email
info@yourexperience.ie
Postal Address
The National Nursing Home Experience Survey
c/o Health Information and Quality Authority
George’s Court
George’s Lane
Dublin 7
D07 E98Y
