Our commitment
St Vincent’s University Hospital is committed to maintaining an open culture with the highest standards of honesty and accountability where a worker can report any concerns in confidence.
Our Protected Disclosures Policy is intended to encourage and enable a worker to raise concerns within our workplace rather than overlooking a problem or “blowing the whistle” externally. Under this policy a worker is entitled to raise concerns or disclose information without fear of penalisation or threat of less favourable treatment, discrimination or disadvantage. It is also designed to provide a transparent and confidential process for dealing with the concern(s) raised.
What is a protected disclosure?
A “protected disclosure” is a disclosure of information which, in the reasonable belief of a "worker", tends to show one or more relevant wrongdoings; which came to the attention of the worker in a work-related context; and is disclosed in the manner prescribed in the Protected Disclosures Act 2014.
How to make a Protected Disclosure
This reporting link enables you to raise any concerns you have about actual or potential breaches, unethical and/or illegal activities, irregularities, wrongdoings, unlawful behaviour and financial misconduct.
Any report submitted by you through this reporting link will be received by an external third party, PwC (PricewaterhouseCoopers). As an independent firm, this provides a confidential, secure channel for you to report your concern or suspicion.
Interpersonal Grievances
It is important to distinguish between a protected disclosure and a grievance. A grievance is a matter specific to the employee/worker i.e., duties, terms and conditions of employment, working procedures or working conditions. A matter concerning interpersonal grievances exclusively affecting a reporting person, such as grievances about interpersonal conflicts involving the reporting person and another worker or a complaint to the employer or about the employer which concerns the worker exclusively is not a relevant wrongdoing for the purposes of the Act. Interpersonal grievances should be processed under the 'EXT-3 Grievance and Disciplinary Procedures for the Health Service' or the 'EXT-2 Dignity at Work Policy'.
Protection for you
Provided workers do not make a statement which they know to be false or do not believe to be true, they have a right not to suffer any detriment by virtue of having made such a disclosure. Any worker who makes a disclosure and has a reasonable belief of wrongdoing will not face retaliation of any kind, even if the concerns or disclosure turn out to be unfounded or undetermined.
Protected Disclosures Policy
Please refer to the tab overleaf for a copy of St Vincent's University Hospital's Protected Disclosures Policy, as well as information regarding anonymous reporting.
This reporting channel is applicable to the "workers" of St. Vincent's University Hospital only. St. Vincent's University Hospital is part of the St. Vincent's Healthcare Group which also includes St. Vincent's Private Hospital, Elm Park and St. Michael's Hospital, Dun Laoghaire.