The first Ombudsman for Children is Ms Emily Logan, the director of nursing at Tallaght Hospital. Her appointment comes almost eight years after a Government first announced establishing such an office.
Ms Logan was previously director of nursing in Our Lady's Hospital for Children in Crumlin, and directorate manager at Great Ormond St Hospital in London. She holds an MBA in health management and an MSc in health psychology.
Her name will be brought before the Dáil and Seanad today and, following a resolution of both houses of the Oireachtas, the appointment will be made by the President tomorrow. She is expected to take up office early in the new year.
The Act setting up the office of the Ombudsman for Children was the last piece of legislation enacted before the dissolution of the last Dáil in 2002, and was introduced by the then Minister of State for Children, Ms Mary Hanafin.
It followed a decade of campaigning on the part of children's lobby groups, and the first commitment to establish such an Ombudsman was made by the Minister for Children in the Rainbow Coalition, Mr Austin Curry, in 1996.
The Ombudsman will have the power to investigate complaints from children, or from people acting on their behalf, against a wide range of bodies. This includes public bodies, such as health boards, schools and hospitals, who can be investigated for acting against the interests of children.
The kind of issues that could be investigated will include a failure to implement anti-bullying policies, poor communication by a hospital with a child's family, or a failure by a health board to investigate concerns about a child's welfare.
Where the Ombudsman finds in favour of a child she will have the power to publish a report and to demand a statement on what the offending body will do to rectify the matter, and ensure it does not happen again.
Parents and others who have a legitimate interest in the child can make complaints. Where it is made made by someone other than a parent, the parent must be told. There are provisions to rule out frivolous complaints.
The children's Ombudsman also has a role in the promotion of children's welfare generally, though it is likely that this will be overshadowed by the complaints role in the early days of the office.
The appointment process involved children at various stages, the present Minister of State for Children, Mr Brian Lenihan, told The Irish Times, including the drafting of the specifications for the job and drawing up the advertisement.
Three names went to Cabinet yesterday, and Ms Logan's appointment was announced after the Cabinet meeting.
She is expected to start work early in the new year, and will have an office and staff. The office of Ombudsman for Children was allocated €282,000 in the Estimates for the Department of Health for 2004, but according to a spokesman for the Department, this could increase if the number of staff recruited demanded it.