Paul Reid Receives Distinguished Fellowship Award from Griffith College

HSE Chief Executive Officer, Paul Reid, has received the Distinguished Fellowship Award from Griffith College in recognition of his unwavering leadership and management of the Health Service Executive (HSE) during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The awarding of the Distinguished Fellowship Award took place during the final day of Griffith College’s five-day graduation ceremony at its historic campus in Dublin 8. These were the first graduation ceremonies to take place on the campus since the outbreak of the pandemic.

Paul Reid took on the role as CEO of HSE in May 2019, shortly before the outbreak of the pandemic.  After little more than half a year in the role, Paul was faced with undoubtedly one of the greatest professional challenges of his career when COVID-19 hit our shores in February 2020; this was further compounded by subsequent waves of the virus in addition to a criminal cyber-attack in May 2021. Paul subsequently led the HSE’s nationwide response to the pandemic to ensure the COVID-19 pandemic was effectively managed across the healthcare system.

President of Griffith College, Professor Diarmuid Hegarty said: ‘Paul’s contribution to Irish healthcare over the last two years will be his legacy. He has led the HSE’s response to this pandemic in a calm and dignified way, encouraging collaboration and mobilisation in the health service. His clear and calm communication has inspired trust and empowered the public. The changes and innovations introduced in the health service under Paul’s leadership will have lasting impacts on the health of the nation for years to come.’