The Health Research Board's (HRB) mission is to improve people's health, patient care and health service delivery by:

• leading and supporting excellent research by outstanding people within a coherent health research system;
• generating knowledge and promoting its application in policy and practice;

and, in so doing, play a key role in health system innovation and economic development.

The Health Research Board is the lead agency supporting and funding health research in Ireland. Our focus is to concentrate our funding into research that offers the greatest potential for translation into positive impacts and benefits for patients, for population health and for the health system.

We also have a core role in maintaining health information systems in the areas of alcohol and drug use and disability and mental health. We are committed to generating and synthesizing high quality research evidence and ensuring new knowledge is applied in policy and practice.

The HRB will provide you with an efficient and courteous service that meets the needs of its customers at all levels.  We are committed to the twelve principles of Quality Customer Service as approved by Government.

We will provide timely and accurate information through our website and through engagement with any of our individual business areas:

• Our reception service will answer all calls within 20 seconds in a professional, courteous and responsible manner.
• We will respond to letters within 15 working days of receipt.
• We will respond to emails within 15 working days of receipt.
• We will keep you informed of progress should any delay arise.

We undertake to ensure the rights to equal treatment in the spirit of the Equal Status Act, 2002 within our workplace and in our dealings with customers.  We endeavour to accommodate diversity, so as to contribute to equality for the groups covered by the equality legislation (under the grounds of race, gender, marital status, family status, disability, sexual orientation, age and membership of the Traveller Community).  Any customer who feels that she or he has been discriminated against on any of the grounds covered in equality legislation should contact the HRBs Customer Service Officer, detailing the exact nature of the complaint.

We aim to provide clean, comfortable and welcoming reception areas for all visitors. We strive to improve facilities in all premises, as needs are identified, with a continued emphasis on ensuring that, in so far as is reasonably achievable, all our premises are made accessible for people with disabilities. We will take steps to address the needs specific to our customers as identified in order to enable them to fully avail of all our services.

The HRB takes a proactive approach in providing information that is clear, timely and accurate, and is available at all points of contact.  We will make every effort to ensure that the information requirements of people with specific needs are met. We will ensure that we will utilise the potential of information technologies to provide all appropriate information on our website in a timely and reliable manner. The HRB also adheres to a strict information Security Policy which ensures the integrity, availability and confidentiality of its data.

Solártharóimid seirbhís trí Ghaeilge a bheith ar fáil do dhaoine ar mian leo a ngnó a dhéanamh trí Ghaeilge.  Anuas ar seo, beidh na Tuarascáil Bhliantúil ar fáil as Gaeilge. The HRB will endeavour to deliver any of our services in Irish for which there has been a request. A response to such requests will be made with made within 15 working days of receipt.

Feedback from our customers is essential to achieve our goal of delivering a top quality service.  We are committed to developing and enhancing the arrangements already in place for consultation with our customers. This allows our customers to play a meaningful role in the development, delivery and review of the services provided by the HRB. We will:

• Monitor and evaluate our performance against our Customer Charter.
• Continue to develop the delivery of services in order to better meet our customers needs.

The HRB, in association with other government bodies, is committed to building a strong culture of research in the health services. In addition the HRB will also continue to work closely with partners from Northern Ireland and Britain, Europe and the United States to promote health research on the island of Ireland.

We ensure staff are recognised as internal customers and that they are properly supported and consulted with regard to service delivery issues.

The HRB are committed to delivering a high quality, efficient and timely service. If you feel you did not receive as good a service from the HRB as you expected please express this to the person to whom you were dealing with who will try to assist. If you prefer please contact the Customer Services Officer:

Ms. Laura Mulligan
The Customer Services Officer
Health Research Board / An Bord Taighde Slainte
Grattan House
67-72 Lower Mount Street
Dublin 2
D02 H638
Phone: (01) 2345000
Email: customerservice(at)hrb.ie

12.1 Information you will need to provide:

• Your name, address, telephone number and email address.
• An outline of your complaint giving dates and attaching copies of supporting documentation (where appropriate).
• Name of the staff member or business area with whom you were dealing.

12.2 Our Standards

• We will treat your complaint with thoroughly with respect and impartiality.
• We will examine and review your complaint and reply within 20 working days of receipt.
• We will continue to keep you informed of developments until the matter is closed.
• We will apologise if a complaint is valid and will ensure to change the way we do things to ensure it does not happen again.

12.3 How to appeal

If you are unhappy with the outcome of the complaints procedure you have the option to raise the issue with the HRB's Director of Corporate Operations:

Mr. Kevin Roantree
Director of Corporate Operations
Health Research Board / An Bord Taighde Slainte
Grattan House
67-72 Lower Mount Street
Dublin 2
D02 H638
Tel: (01) 2345135
Email: kroantree(at)hrb.ie

Following from this if you are still unhappy with the way that the HRB dealt with your complaint you have the statutory right to make a complaint to the Office of the Ombudsman.

Office of the Ombudsman
18 Lower Leeson Street
Dublin 2
Tel: (01) 6395600 or 1890 223 030
Email: ombudsman(at)ombudsman.irl.ie
www.ombudsman.ie

If you are under 18 and you feel you have been unfairly treated in some way, you can contact the Ombudsman for Children's Office.

Ombudsman for Children's Office
52-56 Grand Strand Street
Dublin 1
Free phone: 1800 20 20 40
ococomplaint(at)oco.ie
www.oco.ie