Health & Social Care Professionals Council

CORU is the umbrella body which will be responsible for protecting the public by regulating health and social care professionals. It includes the Health and Social Care Professionals Council established in 2007 and the 12 registration boards to be established under the Health and Social Care Professionals Act.

The name CORU originates from an Irish word, ‘cóir’ meaning fair, just and proper. These are values that resonate deeply within our organisation, and reflect our commitment to protecting the public by regulating health and social care professionals.

Our purpose is to protect the public by promoting high standards of professional conduct and professional education, training and competence among registrants of the 12 health and social care professions as follows:

 

Clinical Biochemists

Physiotherapists

Dietitians

Psychologists

Medical Scientists

Radiographers

Occupational Therapists

Social Care Workers

Orthoptists

Social Workers

Podiatrists

Speech and Language Therapists

 

These 12 professions were designated in the Health and Social Care Professions Act, 2005. This is the first time in Ireland that a single statutory body has been given responsibility for the regulation of multiple professions.

Operating under the aegis of the Department of Health, CORU is in the process of establishing criteria for the registration of members of the designated professions, codes of professional conduct & ethics and standards of professional performance as a basis for determining fitness to practise.

When all 12 Registers are up and running CORU will have responsibility for the registration of over 20,000 professionals.

The professions support statutory regulation and recognise that regulation is critical to the protection of the public and will also enhance their status as professionals. They also recognise the value of rigorous regulation in ensuring that best practice requirements in terms of education, training and experience are enforced in their professions. 

Over time it is possible that the Minister for Health may decide to give CORU responsibility for the registration of additional health and social care professions.

In addition, two other agencies are to come under the umbrella of CORU. These are the Opticians Board, which registers optometrists and dispensing opticians, and the Pre-hospital Emergency Care Council, which regulates emergency medical technicians, paramedics and advanced paramedics. Both these changes are subject to appropriate legislative change.