Dr Tony Holohan appointed to board of Irish Hospice Foundation

Dr Tony Holohan said he is "honoured" to take up the role on Irish Hospice Foundation Board. Picture: Collins

Former chief medical officer (CMO) Dr Tony Holohan has been appointed to the Irish Hospice Foundation's (IHF) board of non-executive directors, it's been announced.

Dr Holohan, who resigned as CMO in July this year, was the face of Ireland's response to the Covid-19 pandemic.

It was announced soon after his resignation that he was to fulfil a role in University College Dublin as Adjunct Full Professor of Public Health at the College of Health and Agricultural Sciences.

Dr Holohan said he is "honoured" to take up the role, stating: "This is an important time for the foundation and the healthcare sectors that they operate in."

"I’m looking forward to helping shape what IHF do to support those in end-of-life and bereavement care.” 

I’m delighted to be appointed to the board of @IrishHospice Foundation.
I look forward to working with Chair, Jean Callanan, the board and staff to help promote the work of the organisation to improve end-of-life care for us all. https://t.co/FkJOy9LQjA

— Dr Tony Holohan (@DrTonyHolohan) September 15, 2022

Also appointed to the board is Amilah Ali who works in the community Welfare/Youth Department of the Islamic Cultural Centre of Ireland in Clonskeagh. 

Welcoming the appointments, Jean Callanan, Chair of IHF said: “I am delighted to welcome Amilah Ali and Dr Tony Holohan to the board of Irish Hospice Foundation. 

"They bring very valuable skills and perspectives which will help IHF to deliver on its vision of an Ireland where everyone experiencing dying, death and bereavement are provided with the care and support that they need.”

Dr Holohan graduated from UCD in 1991 after studying medicine and he went on to specialise in public health. 

He was appointed deputy CMO at the Department of Health and Children in 2001 and took up the role of CMO in 2008.

In March this year, he said he would be stepping down as CMO and taking up a position at Trinity College Dublin.

Following controversy over the Department of Health funding his open-ended secondment, he announced he would no longer take up that position.