The Health Research Board (HRB) is the lead agency in the Republic supporting and funding health research. Its stated aim is to "improve people's health, build research capacity and make a significant contribution to Ireland's knowledge economy".
The HRB was established in 1986 following the amalgamation of the Medico-Social Research Board and the Medical Research Council of Ireland. Dr WA Watts, a former provost of Trinity College Dublin, was its first chairman, while the first permanent chief executive was Dr JV O'Gorman, who led the organisation from 1988-1998, when Dr Ruth Barrington was appointed.
It is organised into three directorates: a corporate function directorate; a research strategy and funding directorate; and a health information and inhouse research directorate.
The research strategy and funding section contains a research management unit which is responsible for funding research programmes and offering career support to researchers. A separate unit is charged with developing the infrastructure needed to support health research in the Republic while a third unit works on the development of research policy and evaluates the outcomes of HRB-funded research.
A health information and inhouse research directorate looks after a number of national information databases. It also carries out direct research on alcohol and drugs, pregnancy, child health, and disability. A mental health research unit carries out national and international research into mental illness. The HRB employs 65 people and has a budget this year of €55 million.