Living Well programme

What is the Living Well Programme?

Living Well is a free group self-management programme. Self-management is what a person does every day to manage their long-term health condition. This may include making choices to improve your health such as becoming more active, eating more healthily and stopping smoking. It may also include more complex tasks such as taking medication, monitoring your symptoms, coping with the emotional aspects of the condition and communicating with healthcare professionals.

Living with a long-term health condition can be challenging, especially during COVID-19. The Living Well programme supports you to develop the skills which will help you to live well with a long-term health condition. The Living Well programme has proven to be effective in helping people to manage their health conditions better.

Living Well has been provided in Ireland for many years under a variety of names including: ‘Quality of Life’ (Donegal), ‘Self Care to Wellness’ (Mayo & Roscommon), ‘Better Health Better Living’ (Beaumont Hospital) and Living Well with Arthritis (Arthritis Ireland) to name a few.

Living Well Programme

  •  Living Well is a free group programme which runs in person or online for 6 weeks. There is one workshop each week which lasts 2.5 hours.
  •  Two trained leaders run the workshops each week. At least one of the leaders lives with a long-term health condition.
  •  People taking part in the workshops may have the same health condition as you. Others will have different health conditions. There will be up to 12 people taking part in the group.
  •  The workshops are delivered in a relaxed and friendly way so that all participants can learn from each other. You can also share experiences of living with your condition.
  •  Each person who takes part gets a book about self-management.

Who this programme is for

Living Well is for adults 18 years and over.

It is suitable for you if you are:

  •  living with one or more long-term health conditions 
  •  caring for someone with a long-term health condition

Living Well is not suitable for people with significant memory or learning difficulties.

What is covered each week

A key part of Living Well is setting goals that you want to achieve. Each week you learn how to reach these goals by making an action plan. You also get support from the group to problem solve.

In addition, the following are covered over the 6 weeks:

Week 1

  • Using your mind to manage symptoms
  • Fatigue and getting a good night’s sleep
  • Introduction to action plans

Week 2

  • Dealing with difficult emotions
  • Physical activity, exercise, preventing falls

Week 3

  • Decision making
  • Pain management
  • Healthy eating

Week 4

  • Breathing techniques
  • Reading food labels
  • Communicating skills

Week 5

  • Medication management
  • Positive thinking, dealing with low mood and feelings of depression

Week 6

  • Making informed treatment decisions
  • Planning for the future 

Upcoming Living Well Programmes 2024

If you are interested in taking part in this programme or would like more information, please contact your local Living Well Team. They will make contact with you and let you know about the next available programme.

If your county is not listed please contact the team closest to you.

CHO 1

Cavan, Donegal, Leitrim, Monaghan, Sligo

Date: Tuesday 6 February 2024 to Tuesday 19 March 2024
Time: 10.30am - 1pm
Location: 
online

Date: Monday 12 February 2024 to Monday 25 March 2024
Time: 2pm - 4.30pm
Location: Northside Community Centre, Sligo

Date: Friday 16 February 2024 to Thursday 22 March 2024
Time: 10.30am - 1pm
Location: Letterkenny, Co Donegal

Contact: Fiona Doherty
Phone: 087 180 0286
Email: livingwell.nw@hse.ie

CHO 2

Mayo, Galway, Roscommon

Date: Friday 9 February 2024 to Friday 15 March 2024
Time: 10.30am - 1pm
Location: Westport, Co Mayo (Westport Leisure Park)

Date: Wednesday 28 February 2024 to Wednesday 3 April 2024
Time: 10.30am - 1pm
Location: Kilkelly, Co Mayo (New Community Centre)

Date: Thursday 7 March 2024 to Thursday 11 April 2024
Time: 10.30am - 1pm
Location: ICA Hall, Gort, Co Galway

Date: Tuesday 12 March 2024 to Tuesday 16 April 2024
Time: 10.30am - 1pm
Location: Boyle Family Resource Centre, Boyle, Co Roscommon

Date: Wednesday 13 March 2024 to Wednesday 17 April 2024
Time: 10.30am - 1pm
Location: Kilkelly, Co Mayo (New Community Centre)

For information on upcoming programmes please contact:
Contact:
Fiona Cunnane
Phone: 087 718 5615
Email: fcunnane@southmayo.com

CHO 3

Limerick, Clare and North Tipperary

Date: Tuesday 27 February 2024 to Tuesday 2 April 2024
Time: 10.30am to 1pm
Location: Caherdavin, Limerick City

Date: Wednesday 28 February 2024 to Wednesday 3 April 2024
Time: 10.30am to 1pm
Location: Newcastlewest, Co. Limerick

Date: Thursday 29 February 2024 to Thursday 4 April 2024
Time: 10.45am to 1.15pm
Location: Nenagh, Co. Tipperary

ContactPhilip Hennessy
Phone: 087 179 9396
Emailphilip.hennessy2@hse.ie

CHO 4

Cork, Kerry

There are currently no programmes scheduled. 

Please contact the team in another area if you wish to attend.

Please note the Location as Programmes can be Online or In-Person.

Contact: Maeve Carmody
Email: Maeveh.carmody@hse.ie

CHO 5

Wexford, Waterford, Kilkenny, Carlow, South Tipperary

Date: Tuesday 5 March 2024 to Tuesday 9 April 2024
Time: 10.30am - 1pm
Location: Clonard Parish Centre, Wexford Town

Date: Wednesday 6 March 2024 to Wednesday 10 April 2024
Time: 10.30am - 1pm
Location: Thomastown Primary Care Centre, Thomastown, Co Kilkenny

Date: Thursday 7 March 2024 to Thursday 11 April 2024
Time: 10.30am - 1pm
Location: Clonmel Family Resource Centre, Clonmel, Co Tipperary

Contact: Matthew Power 
Call: 087 498 8966
Email: livingwellse@hse.ie

CHO 6

Dublin South East, Dun Laoghaire, Wicklow

Time: Thursday 1 February 2024 to Thursday 7 March 2024
Date: 10.30am - 1pm
Location: Ballinteer Health Centre, Dublin 16

Time: Friday 2 February 2024 to Friday 15 March 2024
Date: 10am - 12.30pm
Location: Online

Time: Wednesday 6 March 2024 to Wednesday 10 April 2024
Date: 10.30am - 1pm
Location: Mounttown Community Facility, Dun Laoghaire

Contact: Triona McNamee
Phone:087 405 3880
Email: LivingWellCHEast@hse.ie

CHO 7

Dublin South, Kildare & West Wicklow Community Healthcare

There are currently no programmes scheduled.

Please contact the team in another area if you wish to attend.

Please note the Location as Programmes can be Online or In-Person.

Contact: Mary-Rose Cunningham
Phone: 087 4320202
Email: maryrose.cunningham@hse.ie 

CHO 8

Laois, Offaly, Longford, Westmeath, Louth and Meath

Time: Tuesday 12 March 2024 to Tuesday 16 April 2024
Date: 11am - 1.30pm
Location: Athlone

Contact: Aine McNamee
Phone:087 114 0371
Email:aine.mcnamee@hse.ie

CHO 9

Dublin North City and County

There are currently no programmes scheduled. 

Please contact the team in another area if you wish to attend.

Contact: Louise Potter
Phone:
 087 780 5199 or 01 897 6171
Email: LivingWellDNCC@hse.ie

Podcast

To learn more about the Living Well Programme follow the link to this Podcast on our Health & Wellbeing You Tube Channel:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jd9TXot-PzA

Living Well Podcast Poster (PDF, size 481.7 KB, 1 page)

Feedback on the programme

People who have done the programme say that they feel more confident and in control of their health. They also report that their mood has improved and they have better sleep.

HSE Health Matters Living Well Testimonial Winter 2022 (PDF, size 325 KB, 1 page)

"I met wonderful people with other illnesses and this made me feel ‘not alone’ which helped me emotionally.”

“It made me more aware of my habits and gave me the tools to make positive changes”

“My confidence has increased and I feel I am now able to manage my condition better”

Promotional Material

Living Well booklet Interactive (PDF, size 1.4MB, 2 pages)

Please contact your local coordinator for printed supplies of any promotional material.

Living Well is a Self–Management Resource Centre (SMRC) Evidence-Based Self-Management Program originally developed at Stanford University.

This project has received funding from the Government of Ireland’s Slaintecare Integration Fund 2019 under grant agreements 38, 78, 185, 219, 413, 418.