IHRD-55 Response Accepted Self-assessed

Board Member Training on Patient Safety

Recommendation

Trust Chairs and Non-Executive Board Members should be trained to scrutinise the performance of Executive Directors particularly in relation to patient safety objectives.

Published Evidence Summary
The following publicly available evidence relates to this recommendation:
The Department of Health (NI) established an IHRD Implementation Programme to address the inquiry's recommendations. As part of this programme, the HSC Board Member Handbook was published on 18 May 2021, developed by the Duty of Quality workstream to assist Boards in scrutinising safety and quality, and induction training programmes for Trust Board members were established (HSC Trusts / Department of Health NI, 2026-02-06; health-ni.gov.uk).
How was this assessed?
Assessed by gemini-2.5-flash on 24 Mar 2026
Checked data held on this site (government responses, progress updates, independent evidence)
External sources searched: www.gov.uk, www.health-ni.gov.uk, www.legislation.gov.uk, hansard.parliament.uk
This recommendation requires implementation across many organisations. The assessment reflects central policy response, not adoption in individual organisations.
Jurisdiction
Northern Ireland
Response
Accepted
Accepted HSC Trusts
01 Mar 2018

Training programmes implemented for Board members on scrutiny of patient safety performance.

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Published Evidence

Published assessments of implementation progress from inspectorates, select committees, official progress reports, and other sources. Check the source type badge to see whether each assessment is independent or government self-reported.

Confirmed Completed
06 Feb 2026
HSC Trusts / Department of Health NI Other

HSC Board Member Handbook published May 2021 - the first product to emerge from the IHRD Implementation Programme. Induction training programmes established for Trust Board members.

View detailed findings

The HSC Board Member Handbook was published on 18 May 2021 and described as the first product from the IHRD Implementation Programme. Developed by the Duty of Quality workstream to assist Boards in scrutinising safety and quality, it was produced for and by Non-Executive Directors with a focus on quality improvement and learning from error. Board member induction and training programmes have been established across Trusts, addressing recommendations 55-56.

HSC Board Member Handbook View Source
Source
Inquiry Hyponatraemia Inquiry
Report Report of the Inquiry into Hyponatraemia-related Deaths 31 Jan 2018
View Source
Responsible Bodies
HSC Trusts Primary
Themes & Tags
Patient safety governance Weak Government Accountability & Scrutiny Training Governance Patient Safety
Recommendation age 8.1 yrs
Last formal update 783 days ago