Another challenging year ahead for the healthcare sector: Where do we house our healthcare workers?

The healthcare sector is expected to continue experiencing staff shortages in 2026, with many long-term vacancies remaining unfilled. Ongoing demand continues to exceed available supply, placing sustained pressure on the sector. These challenges are compounded by difficulties in recruitment and retention, and a shortage of suitable housing.

Bitesize briefing

• Staff shortages persist: Long-term vacancies and high attrition rates continue to challenge the sector.
• Housing crisis impacts care: Living costs and rising rent mean newly qualified and lower-paid healthcare workers struggle to afford to work in urban areas.
• Sláintecare under pressure: Without affordable housing, community-based care goals risk being undermined.
• Integrated approach needed: Workforce planning must be interconnected with socioeconomic policies to meet future healthcare needs.

Sláintecare’s aim is to provide more care in local, community-based services, freeing up hospital capacity for specialist care, thus reducing national waiting lists. Achieving this objective requires a sustainable, skilled healthcare workforce capable of supporting Ireland’s growing ageing population. Demographic projections indicate significant continued growth in our older population, increasing demand for qualified staff in community healthcare, social care and home support. However, these roles experience high attrition rates, particularly in high-cost urban areas. Rising living costs for healthcare workers reduce the capacity for community-based care, resulting in a more reactive, hospital-focused system that runs counter to Sláintecare’s core objectives.

The question is, where do we house our healthcare workforce to provide to Sláintecare’s goal of “the right care, in the right place, at the right time”? In areas of highest healthcare demand, particularly Greater Dublin, housing supply is limited and extremely costly. Dublin, Meath and Kildare have the fastest population growth nationally, far outpacing growth in housing supply. Furthermore, costs of living and rent mean newly qualified and lower-paid healthcare workers struggle to afford to work in the Dublin area.

Unaffordable housing and availability constraints undermine healthcare workforce stability. The interconnected challenges of population ageing, future healthcare demand and housing pressures require a systems-thinking, integrated approach to healthcare workforce planning. Helpfully, digital health is accelerating, bringing increasing demand for skills in virtual wards, telehealth and digital technologies. However, healthcare at its core is a person-centred service that requires face-to-face human interaction.

We need to think about healthcare workforce planning as interconnected to Ireland’s socioeconomic policies. We cannot solve healthcare staff shortages and long waiting lists in isolation; only with joined-up thinking and strategic cross-sectoral planning can we design a sustainable healthcare system that meets Ireland’s future needs.

At Crowe, we aim to help drive this joined-up thinking through the work we do in 2026.

How Crowe can help

At Crowe, we understand that solving healthcare workforce challenges requires joined-up thinking across sectors. Our advisory teams work with healthcare providers, policymakers and stakeholders to design integrated strategies to address these significant issues. With deep expertise in healthcare and public policy, we help organisations navigate complex challenges and build sustainable solutions for Ireland’s future healthcare system.

Contact us today to explore how we can help your organisation plan for the future, supporting you to deliver the right care, in the right place, at the right time.