After a long and committed career to nursing and the health service in Ireland, Dr Siobhan O’Halloran retires as Chief Nursing Officer at the Department of Health. Siobhan has held many key positions in the Irish health service and the education sector.

She was Head of the School of Nursing, Midwifery, Health Studies and Applied Sciences at Dundalk IT. She also worked as Executive Director of the National Implementation Committee for Undergraduate Nursing at the Department of Health.

Siobhan was the driving force behind implementing changes in nurse education and practise. She was also instrumental in setting up the Office of the Nursing and Midwifery Services Director (ONMSD) at the HSE in 2006. The ONMSD works to strategically lead and support nurses and midwives to deliver safe, high-quality, person-centred care.

In 2013, the Department of Health appointed Siobhan as its first Chief Nursing Officer (CNO) at Assistant secretary level, a position designed to ensure a nursing and midwifery perspective is included in the development of policy.

NMBI would like to acknowledge and thank Siobhan for her contribution to nursing and midwifery and wish her well in her retirement.