Living Well is a free HSE group self-management programme for adults aged 18 years and older. There are Living Well courses running in many areas from the beginning of September, and in this article Mary Gowing, Self-management Support Coordinator for Long-term Health Conditions in the HSE, provides an overview of the programme.
Living Well is a free HSE programme for adults with long-term health conditions. Over the course of six weeks, participants develop practical skills and confidence to better manage their chronic or long-term health condition. Workshops are delivered by two trained leaders, one or both of whom are living with a long-term health condition. Unlike clinical education programmes which may focus on education and clinical management, the Living Well Programme focuses on developing and enhancing the self-management skills of participants. In this way, it complements regular treatment and structured patient education programmes.
One former participant, Reggie Lee, knows just how impactful the Living Well Programme can be. Reggie experienced his first of four heart attacks 35 years ago, and, as well as having had a stroke and a triple by-pass operation, he lives with coeliac disease. Managing this range of conditions would be a challenge for anyone — but then another difficulty was thrown into the mix.
In 2017, Mr Lee was working in a merchandising job – “driving around the country with the passenger-side floor of the car covered in empty soft-drink bottles”, he admits. One day he looked up from a display he was building and realised he couldn’t see the person speaking to him. Following a prompt visit to his optician and GP, he ended up in A&E and was admitted to ICU. Mr Lee was diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes.
He says that it was only when he attended a Living Well Programme after this diagnosis that he learned for the first time how to read food labels and to understand the content of the foods he was consuming — a key step in taking back control of his health.
Mr Lee benefitted so much from the programme that he has gone on to volunteer as a peer-leader and co-facilitates Living Well Programmes in CHO 2 (Galway, Mayo and Roscommon). He says; “the weekly action plans that are a part of the Living Well Programme bring me back to doing the things I should be doing — like walking, drinking water and eating properly”.
The Living Well Programme also supports participants to better manage their medications and how to communicate with their healthcare team — skills which Reggie uses when dealing with his local pharmacist: “I get great support and advice from my pharmacist, and he explains the ins and outs of my prescriptions and how medications may interact with each other.”
Living Well is for adults 18 years and over who are living with, or caring for someone with, a long-term health condition(s). Living Well is not suitable for people with significant memory or learning difficulties.
The workshops are delivered in a relaxed and friendly way, and people learn from each other.
Onward signposting to supports/resources/other programmes is key at the end of the Programme.
People can self-refer or be signposted to the programme by their healthcare professionals. More information about Living Well, and dates and venues of upcoming programmes can be found on hse.ie/LivingWell.
To enrol, people should contact their local Living Well coordinator (details on the HSE Living Well webpage). If the programme isn’t running in their area, they should contact the coordinator in the area closest to them. As the programme is online, people from areas not currently delivering the programme can be accepted on to programmes delivered in other areas.
People can also contact HSE Live on 1800 700 700 for information.
By supporting people to self-manage, the Living Well Programme aims to reduce unscheduled care admissions and can provide a suitable post-discharge self-management programme to aid recovery, and in turn contribute towards a reduction in acute care re-admissions. The Living Well Research Report from March 2022 demonstrated the value of the Living Well Programme in supporting participants to become effective self-managers and active partners in their healthcare.
Some of the key findings are illustrated below:
| CHO | Area covered | Programme dates | Living Well contact |
| 1 | Donegal, Sligo, Leitrim, Cavan, Monaghan | Mondays: 18 September to 23 October, 10.30 – 1.00pm, Cavan Pastoral Centre. Tuesdays: 26 September to 31 October, 10.30 -1.00pm, Sligo Northside Community Centre. | Contact: Helen O Driscoll Phone: 087 1800 286 Email: Livingwell.NW@hse.ie |
| 2 | Mayo, Galway, Roscommon | Tuesdays: 12 September to 27 October, 10.30 – 1.00pm, Ballybane Community Centre, Galway city. Wednesdays: 13 September to 28 October, 10.30 – 1.00pm, online. Fridays: 22 September to 27 October, 10.30 – 1.00pm, Aras Inis Gluaire, Belmullet. | Contact: Fiona Cunnane Phone: 087 7185 615 Email: fcunnane@southmayo.com |
| 3 | Limerick, Clare and North Tipperary | Tuesdays: 12 September to 17 October, 10.30 – 1.00pm, Newport Community Centre, Newport, Tipperary. Thursdays: 14 September to 19 October 10.30 – 1.00pm, Shannon RFC, Shannon, Co Clare. Fridays: 15 September to 20 October, 2.30 – 5.00pm, Redemptorist Music School, Island Road, Limerick. Mondays: 18 September to 23 October, 10.30 – 1.00pm, Ennis PCC. | Contact: Philip Hennessy Phone: 087 1799 396 Email: philip.hennessy2@hse.ieContact: Liz Cox Phone: 087 1799 392 Email: liz.cox@hse.ie |
| 5 | Wexford, Waterford, Kilkenny, Carlow, South Tipperary | Mondays: 4 September to 16 October, 10.30 – 1.00pm, online. Tuesdays: 5 September to 10 October, 10.30 – 1.00pm, Loughboy Parish Centre, Kilkenny. | Contact: Living Well office Call: 056 7784 955 Email: livingwellse@hse.ie |
| 6 | Dublin South East, Dún Laoghaire, Wicklow | Wednesdays: 13 September to 25 October, 10.30 – 1.00pm, online. Tuesdays: 26 September to 31 October, 10.30 – 1.00pm, Bray Primary Care Centre. | Contact: Triona McNamee Phone: 087 4053 880 Email: LivingWellCHEast@hse.ie |
| 8 | Midlands Louth Meath Community Healthcare | Tuesdays: 10 October to 14 November, 10:30 – 1.00pm, Navan. Wednesdays: 11 October to 22 November, 10.30 – 1.00pm, online. Thursdays: 12 October to 16 November, 10.30 – 1.00pm, Kells Family Resource Centre. | Contact: Aine McNamee Phone: 087 114 0371 Email: aine.mcnamee@hse.ie |
| 9 | Community Healthcare Dublin North City and County | Tuesdays: 19 September to 7 November, 10.30 – 1.00pm, online. Tuesdays: 19 September to 7 November 7.00pm – 9.30pm, online | Contact: Leah Harrington Phone: 087 365 4392 Email: LivingWellDNCC@hse.ie |
Mary Gowing
Self-management Support Coordinator for Long-term Health Conditions, CHO6
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