A variety of organisations are currently working together to improve the health and wellbeing of the Roma community in Co Tipperary. The HSE, Tipperary County Council, and Youth Work Ireland Tipperary recently launched a needs assessment overview in addition to a report on the work of the Health and Accommodation Pilot Project that was established locally in 2022. 

The project identified just over 300 people of the Roma community who are living in Co Tipperary (about 200 of whom are in the South Tipperary area), with the estimated Roma population throughout the county estimated at 700. The recently launched reports provide detailed information on the Roma community locally, particularly in relation to their housing situation and other key social determinants of health.

Access to adequate accommodation (including insecurity of tenure, poor housing conditions, homelessness and overcrowding) are of particular concern.  This was identified as the single biggest issue. The reports also provide an evidence base from which to plan an effective response to improving the situation of the Roma community locally.

Speaking at the launch of the reports, Suzanne Nolan, HSE South East Community Healthcare Regional Roma Health, explained that the HSE, in trying to support equal access to health services for people from vulnerable groups, was “very pleased with the active partnerships we have developed in Co Tipperary. We are beginning to see results from our engagement with members of the Roma community. Organisations, such as those in the public sector, are responding sensitively and effectively to people who aren’t as socially included as others around them in Co Tipperary.”

“Our wider project had its origins in reaching out to the Roma community during the COVID 19 pandemic, primarily to identify their health and information needs at the time. We were able to build on what was being done already through supporting health literacy, improving access, and developing health service pathways. Through the local authority, through Youth Work Ireland and through our  project worker, we worked in various ways to raise awareness. This has helped to address the adverse social determinants of health faced by the Roma community and helped in ensuring advances are being made in improving the lives of individuals and their families.” 

The report findings pointed to the need for a concerted policy response to reduce inequalities. The findings also highlight the importance of providing advocacy supports to the Roma community, in particular to assist them in understanding their basic rights and entitlements, as well as assisting them in accessing and navigating a range of services.

While the needs assessment found higher levels of employment among the Roma in comparison to data from the 2018 national Roma Needs Assessment,  unemployment levels are nonetheless high. In a number of instances, unemployment is coupled with an absence of social protection supports in households - complications arising from not being able to comply with Habitual Residence Conditions.

The reports found that households had stated that they had been unsuccessful in medical card applications. This was as a result of their not being able to provide evidence of paying rent – which in some cases meant being above an income threshold in eligibility. Integrated pathways of care were developed to support Roma experiencing homelessness as well as those living in insecure/unsuitable accommodation.

Congratulating everyone involved in contributing to the reports, Anna Marie Lanigan Head of Service/Primary Care, HSE South East Community Healthcare, explained that “the broadening of diversity resulting from the rich mix of cultures within Ireland in recent times has significantly enriched the fabric of social, economic and cultural life here.

“At the same time, this emerging diversity presents challenges for health services when responding to the needs of people from diverse ethnic and cultural backgrounds. The manner in which partnerships across public service bodies have engaged with people within the Roma community itself in Co Tipperary has been effective in identifying needs, raising awareness and identifying ways in which improvements can come about. This process also now serves as template for facing up to such challenges elsewhere.”