Ireland's UN SDGs - Goal 3 Good Health and Well-Being 2024

SDG 3.4.1 Mortality Rate Attributed to Cardiovascular Disease, Cancer, Diabetes or Chronic Respiratory Disease

SDG 3.4.1 Mortality rate attributed to cardiovascular disease, cancer, diabetes or chronic respiratory disease data is published by the CSO, Vital Statistics section.

Definition

The SDG indicators metadata repository provides the following definition in the SDG 3.4.1 metadata document:

Mortality rate attributed to cardiovascular disease, cancer, diabetes or chronic respiratory disease. Probability of dying between the ages of 30 and 70 years from cardiovascular diseases, cancer, diabetes or chronic respiratory diseases, defined as the per cent of 30-year-old-people who would die before their 70th birthday from cardiovascular disease, cancer, diabetes, or chronic respiratory disease, assuming that s/he would experience current mortality rates at every age and s/he would not die from any other cause of death (e.g., injuries or HIV/AIDS). This indicator is calculated using life table methods.

CSO - Vital Statistics

The standardised death rate from neoplasms per 1,000 population remained the same between 2022 and 2023, at 2.0. The death rate for diseases of the respiratory system rose from 1.4 to 1.6 between 2022 and 2023. The rate for diseases of the circulatory system, diseases of the digestive system, external causes of injury and poisoning, and diabetes related deaths remained the same since 2022. 

There were 35,459 deaths in 2023 of which 18,361 were male deaths and 17,098 were female deaths. The rate of death per 1,000 population was 7.0 for males compared with 6.5 for females.

The largest number of deaths for males were neoplasms at 5,658 followed by diseases of the circulatory system at 5,281.

The largest number of deaths for females were also neoplasms at 4,915 followed by diseases of the circulatory system at 4,591. See Table 6.1 and Figure 6.1.

In 2023, the death rate from neoplasms was 0.68 per 1,000 population for those aged 15-64 years. In the 65 years and over age group, the death rate from neoplasms was 10.15. See Table 6.2.

Dublin City accounted for 4,442 (12.5%) out of the total of 35,459 deaths in 2023. Longford had the smallest number of deaths with 338 (<1%) in 2023.

Neoplasms accounted for 10,573 (30%) of all deaths in 2023, with the highest number of cases being in Dublin City with 1,246 (12%). See Table 6.3.

SDG 3.4.2 Suicide Mortality Rate

SDG 3.4.2 Suicide mortality rate is published by the CSO, Vital Statistics section.

Definition

The SDG indicators metadata repository provides the following definition in the SDG 3.4.2 metadata document:

The suicide mortality rate as defined as the number of suicide deaths in a year, divided by the population, and multiplied by 100,000.

CSO - Vital Statistics

CSO, Vital Statistics section publish the suicide mortality rate on the CSO database.

Suicide by Gender

The number of suicides dropped from 412 in 2022 to 302 in 2023. Three in four deaths (232) from suicide were male in 2023. The crude mortality rate from suicide dropped from 8.1 to 5.7 between 2022 and 2023. See Table 6.4 and Figure 6.2.

Suicide by Age

The latest data on suicides by age group is 2021 and based on year of death. In 2021, the crude death rate from suicide was 9.9 per 100,000 population, the suicide rate for males was 15.8 per 100,000 population and the female rate was 4.2 per 100,000 population. See Table 6.5.

Please note that number of suicides for 2022 and 2023 can be found on the Vital Statistics database and this is based on year of registration. Table 6.5 is based on year of death.

Suicide by County

The Mid-East region had the highest number of suicides in 2023 with 58 deaths, while the Midlands had the smallest number with 16 deaths by suicide. See Table 6.6.

SDG 3.5.1 Coverage of Treatment Interventions (Pharmacological, Psychosocial and Rehabilitation and Aftercare Services) for Substance Use Disorders

SDG 3.5.1 Coverage of treatment interventions (pharmacological, psychosocial and rehabilitation and aftercare services) for substance use disorders is published by the Health Research Board, National Drugs Library.

Definition

The SDG indicators metadata repository provides the following definition in the SDG 3.5.1 metadata document:

The coverage of treatment interventions for substance use disorders is defined as the number of people who received treatment in a year divided by the total number of people with substance use disorders in the same year. This indicator is disaggregated by two broad groups of psychoactive substances: (1) drugs, (2) alcohol and other psychoactive substances.

Whenever possible, this indicator is additionally disaggregated by type of treatment interventions (pharmacological, psychosocial and rehabilitation and aftercare services).

The indicator is accompanied and can be analysed together with contextual information such as prevalence of alcohol and drug use disorders and availability coverage, i.e. Service Capacity Index for Substance Use Disorders (SCI-SUD) 1 that reflects the capacity of national health systems to provide treatment for substance (alcohol, drugs and other psychoactive substances) use disorders, in terms of the proportion (%) of available health system elements in a given country from a theoretical maximum.

Health Research Board - National Drugs Library

Drugs by Gender

According to the National Drugs Library there were 12,009 treatment interventions for substance use disorders involving drugs in 2022, an increase from 10,274 in 2018. Almost 72% (8,639) of treatment interventions for drugs were male in 2022 (of those for whom gender was known).

There were 7,421 treatment interventions for substance use disorders involving alcohol in 2022, a slight decrease from 7,464 in 2018. Nearly 62% (4,565) of the alcohol interventions were male in 2022 (of those for whom gender was known). See Table 6.7.

Drugs by Type 

In 2022, the highest number of persons seeking drug treatment intervention was in relation to cocaine with 4,084 users seeking treatment. Heroin was the second most common drug with 3,438 users seeking intervention. For every drug type more males sought treatment intervention. See Table 6.8.

Drugs by Age Group

People who had treatment interventions for drugs were younger than those with treatments for alcohol. Of the 12,009 treatment interventions for drugs in 2022, 34.1% were aged 25-34 years while 30.3% were aged 35-44 years. There were 7,421 treatment interventions for alcohol in 2022 and 34.5% were aged 45-64 years with 30.1% aged 35-44 years. See Table 6.9.

Drug Use by County

Over half (52.5%) the treatment interventions for drugs in 2022 were in Dublin, with 6.5% in Cork. See Table 6.10 and Map 6.1.

For alcohol, 30.1% of treatment interventions were in Dublin with 9.4% in Cork. See Table 6.10.

SDG 3.5.2 Alcohol per Capita Consumption (Aged 15 Years and Older) Within a Calendar Year in Litres of Pure Alcohol

SDG 3.5.2 Alcohol per capita consumption (aged 15 years and older) within a calendar year in litres of pure alcohol is published by Alcohol Action Ireland and the Healthy Ireland Survey 2023 Summary Report.

Definition

The SDG indicators metadata repository provides the following definition in the SDG 3.5.2 metadata:

Harmful use of alcohol, defined according to the national context as alcohol per capita consumption (aged 15 years and older) within a calendar year in litres of pure alcohol.

Total alcohol per capita (15+ years) consumption (APC) is defined as the total (sum of three-year average recorded APC and unrecorded APC adjusted for tourist consumption) amount of pure alcohol consumed per adult (15+ years), in a calendar year, in litres of pure alcohol. Recorded alcohol consumption refers to official statistics at country level (production, import, export, and sales or taxation data), while the unrecorded alcohol consumption refers to alcohol which is not taxed and is outside the usual system of governmental control, such as home or informally produced alcohol (legal or illegal), smuggled alcohol, surrogate alcohol (which is alcohol not intended for human consumption), or alcohol obtained through cross-border shopping (which is recorded in a different jurisdiction). Tourist consumption takes into account tourists visiting the country and inhabitants visiting other countries. Positive figures denote alcohol consumption of outbound tourists being greater than alcohol consumption by inbound tourists, negative numbers the opposite. Tourist consumption is based on UN statistics, and data are provided by the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation.

Alcohol Action Ireland

Information here is from Alcohol Action Ireland's, Facts About Alcohol.

In 2023 alcohol consumption was 9.9 litres of pure alcohol per capita over the age of 15 years. This represents a fall of 10% since the passage of the Public Health (Alcohol) Act in 2018. See Table 6.11 and Figure 6.3.

The modest government target is that Ireland should reduce its use to 9.1 litres per capita - a target originally set in 2013 and to be achieved by 2020. 

The 2023 level is 8% above this target which is a significant improvement on the level in 2019 which was 18.5% above the target. However, if all who consume alcohol drank at or below the current HSE lower risk drinking guidelines, alcohol consumption would be at least 38% lower.

Healthy Ireland Survey 2023 Summary Report

The Healthy Ireland Survey 2023 Summary Report (7 MB) presents the initial topline findings from the 2023 wave of the Healthy Ireland Survey. The report indicates that:

• 70% of individuals aged 15 years or over report consuming alcohol during the past 12 months. This is lower than the 75% prevalence rate reported in 2018 (the last time drinking alcohol in the past 12 months was measured on the Healthy Ireland Survey).
• 38% of people aged 15 years or over drink at least once a week. This is broadly the same as measured in 2021 (37%), although remains lower than 2018 (41%). 21% drink multiple times per week – similar to the measurements in 2022 and 2018 (21% and 23% respectively).
• Almost three-quarters (73%) of men report drinking alcohol in the past 12 months, compared to 67% of women. However, a slightly larger difference exists in past week drinking with 43% of men drinking weekly compared to 34% of women. These gender differences are broadly aligned with 2018. 

See Table 6.12.

• There has been a notable change in drinking behaviour over the past 5 years among those aged 25-54 years, inclusive. Those in this age group are now less likely to have consumed alcohol in the past 12 months and are also less likely to drink at least once a week. This is particularly evident among individuals at the younger end of this age range.
• Past year drinking has increased since 2018 among those aged 15-24 years, and the proportion of this age group drinking at least once a week has also increased since 2018. See Table 6.13.

• Almost a quarter (24%) of the population are considered binge drinkers, that is they drink 6 or more standard drinks on a typical drinking occasion. This remains lower than the equivalent figure in 2018 (27%).
• Men are much more likely than women to binge drink on a typical drinking occasion (37% and 12% respectively), with younger people more likely to do so than older people (aged 15-24: 36%, 75+ year olds: 7%). See Table 6.14.

Further details are available in the Healthy Ireland Survey 2023 Summary Report (7 MB).

In April 2024, the Health Research Board published an interesting report on alcohol - see Alcohol: availability, affordability, related harm, and policy in Ireland (PDF 5.5 MB) for further details.

SDG 3.6.1 Death Rate due to Road Traffic Injuries

SDG 3.6.1 Death rate due to road traffic injuries is published by the Road Safety Authority.

Definition

The SDG indicators metadata repository provides the following definition in the SDG 3.6.1 metadata document:

Death rate due to road traffic injuries as defined as the number of road traffic fatal injury deaths per 100,000 population.

Road Safety Authority 

The Road Safety Authority (RSA) published their Report Provisional Review of Fatalities (1 January to 31 December 2023)(PDF 507 KB) which indicates that:

• As of 31 December 2023, there have been 177 fatal collisions, which have resulted in 188 fatalities on Irish roads.
• This represents 28 more fatal collisions and 33 more deaths (+21%) compared to provisional Garda data for 2022.
• Fatalities are highest since 2014 when there were 192 fatalities.
• Of fatalities, 57% were injured in a single vehicle collision, compared to 52% of fatalities in 2022.
• The monthly average for 2022 was 13 fatalities, monthly average 2023 was 16 fatalities.
• In 2023, driver fatalities represent over a third of fatalities (38%), while pedestrians represent almost a quarter of fatalities (23%).
• Over a quarter (26%) of fatalities were aged 16-25 years.
• Approximately 7 in 10 of the fatalities were on rural roads, with a speed limit of 80km/h or greater.

See Table 6.15.

Road Deaths by Age Group, 2023

In 2023, the highest risk age group was those aged 16-25 years (26%) with 48 deaths.

Compared to 2022, there was an increase (+51) in fatalities aged 0-55 years, while there was a decrease in fatalities aged 56 years and over (-18).

Of fatalities, 78% (147) were male and 22% (41) were female. See Table 6.16 and Figure 6.4.

Fatalities by Urban and Rural Breakdown, 2018-2022

In 2022 there were 43 road deaths in urban areas and 114 deaths in rural areas. See Table 6.17 and Figure 6.5.

Road Deaths by County, 2023

There were 188 road deaths in Ireland in 2023, up 33 on last year. There were 16 road deaths recorded for Tipperary in 2023, the highest of all counties. The number of road deaths was almost as high for Cork and Dublin, as both counties had 15 road deaths in 2023. Longford had 2 road deaths in 2023, the lowest of all counties. See Table 6.18 and Map 6.2.

Road Deaths by Road User Type

• In 2023, driver fatalities represent over a third of fatalities (38%), while pedestrians represent almost a quarter of fatalities (23%)
• Compared to 2022, there has been an increase in fatalities among all road user groups: drivers (+13), passengers (+12), motorcyclists (+4), pedal cyclists (+2), pedestrians (+1) and other road users (+1)
• The last time there was a higher number of pedestrian fatalities was in 2011 (47)

See Table 6.19 and Figure 6.6.

Provisional Data - June 2024

Recently published data in Provisional fatality statistics 2019-2024 (30 June 2024) shows data for the first six months of 2024. The data for the first six months of 2024 (January to June) indicates that:

• As of 30 June, there have been 93 fatalities on Irish roads.
• This represents 10 more deaths compared to the same period in 2023.
• Of the 93 fatalities in 2024, 34 were drivers, 20 were passengers, 21 were pedestrians, 11 were motorcyclists, 5 were cyclists and 2 were e-scooter users.

See Table 6.20 and Figure 6.7.