IHRD-5
Response
Accepted
Employment Contracts and Duty of Candour
Recommendation
Trusts should review their contracts of employment, policies and guidance to ensure that, where relevant, they include and are consistent with the duty of candour.
Published Evidence Summary
The following publicly available evidence relates to this recommendation:
- The Department of Health NI reported that contractual obligations relating to the duty of candour were under development (IHRD Implementation Programme, Department of Health NI, March 2018).
- A Being Open Framework has been implemented across HSC Trusts, including expectations for candour in staff and organisational conduct (Department of Health NI Progress Report, December 2018).
- The framework remains non-statutory; contractual obligations cannot be tied to a statutory duty that has not been enacted.
- A Being Open Framework has been implemented across HSC Trusts, including expectations for candour in staff and organisational conduct (Department of Health NI Progress Report, December 2018).
- The framework remains non-statutory; contractual obligations cannot be tied to a statutory duty that has not been enacted.
How was this evidence gathered?
Evidence searched by Claude (Anthropic) on 17 Jul 2026
Checked data held on this site (government responses, progress updates, independent evidence)
This recommendation applies across many organisations. The evidence above reflects central policy activity; adoption in individual organisations may vary.
Jurisdiction
Northern Ireland
Response
Accepted
Response
Accepted
Accepted
HSC Trusts
Initial Response
01 Mar 2018
Trusts reviewing employment contracts and policies for consistency with duty of candour requirements.
Accepted
Northern Ireland Executive
Follow-up
01 Mar 2018
Prototypes to determine the most appropriate way to operate such a service are progressing. Learning will inform proposals for an IME service in Northern Ireland.
Source
Inquiry
Hyponatraemia Inquiry
Report
Report of the Inquiry into Hyponatraemia-related Deaths
31 Jan 2018
Responsible Bodies
Northern Ireland Executive
Primary
HSC Trusts
Primary
Themes & Tags
Recommendation age
8.5 yrs
Last formal update
910 days ago