The National Age Friendly Ireland Programme is a shared service hosted by Meath County Council on behalf of the local government sector. This municipality-led national programme is based on the World Health Organisation’s (WHO) Global Age-Friendly Programme and is operational across all 31 local authority areas in Ireland. The programme is focused on ensuring Ireland is responsive to the increasing needs of older people and adopting effective local policy approaches to respond to ageing. This process is based on multi-stakeholder engagement and over the last 10 years significant progress has been made in implementing innovative practices responding to the needs of an ageing society.
Catherine is a principal advisor at strategic level engaging with key leaders across public, private and the NGO sector and consulting democratically with citizens to
reshape the way in which services are delivered. Her expertise lies in strategic planning and promoting collaborative approaches to effective service reform.
Spanning a 25-year career, Catherine’s previous background involved working in the field of telecare, telehealth, housing and community and the provision of remote clinical and nonclinical care services to older people who want to live independently. Catherine is a champion of integrated care services with a vision of promoting independent living and building sustainable environments. She has worked with a variety of organisations where she garnered extensive knowledge of the issues affecting older people and how we plan for demographic change.
Catherine McGuigan
Chief Officer, Age Friendly Ireland