In 1997, during the commemoration of the 150th anniversary of the great Irish famine, health service staff in Cork and Kerry established SHARP to help relieve poverty both abroad and at home.
Currently over 700 staff are members and have contributed €1.4m to projects which have saved and changed the lives of thousands of people who have suffered extreme poverty and deprivation. We have supported many projects since 1997. The majority of the beneficiaries are children.
It is worth noting that every euro can achieve approximately ten times more in a developing country.
Examples:
- Provision of clean water to communities to prevent needless deaths of children
- Training and equipping of local midwives to prevent maternal and infant deaths
- Feeding programmes for malnourished children
- Construction and equipping of rural hospitals
- Construction of schools and education of children
- Support for disadvantaged families and elderly in Ireland
What we do
Operating policies and principles
- Every cent donated goes directly to projects
- Nothing goes to administration costs or salaries of any organisation
- No member of SHARP can get any payment from the fund for any reason
- All members have free access to the files and records
HSE Approval and support
The HSE Management and Staff support SHARP by:
- Facilitating members’ contributions from pay
- Auditing the accounts of the Association
- Providing all stationery, postage and other administrative requirements
- Providing advice and participation in drafting and distributing information and reports
- Facilitating information days in hospitals and other large centres
- Facilitating presentations to induction and retirement seminars
How we are managed
We are a registered charity (no.CHY12582) and are compliant with the Irish National Code of Governance. Control over the funds is directly in the hands of our members by means of:
- A Constitution, which includes strict rules regarding payments
- A Management Committee with a majority elected by the members (two nominated by HSE Management)
- An annual audit carried out by senior officers of the HSE
- Regular reports to members
Contact us
Our Constitution
