Chief Medical Officer has a new string to her bow

Professor Breda Smyth, HSE West Director of Public Health has been promoted to interim CMO.

The Mayo native takes over the role on July 4 when Dr Holohan resigns after 14 years in the position.

Health Minister Stephen Donnelly said that Professor Smyth would fill the role, on secondment, on a short-term basis until a new permanent CMO is appointed.

Currently she is a professor for public health medicine at NUI Galway, a consultant in Public Health for HSE West, and has specialised in public health for the past 16 years.

Professor Smyth was a member of NPHET (National Public Health Emergency Team), which advised on Ireland’s response to the pandemic including recommending lockdown restrictions and guidelines.

Professor Smyth said: “I am excited to have the opportunity to work together with colleagues in the Department of Health, and across our health and social care service to build on the considerable work done, both before and during Covid-19, to promote and protect public health and the health and wellbeing of the population of Ireland.

“The pandemic has placed a spotlight on public health, and I look forward to the opportunity to advance the public health agenda through important, cross-government initiatives like Healthy Ireland and Sláintecare to improve the health and wellbeing of the entire population including marginalised groups and continuing to address inequities in health.”

Minister Donnelly said that the process of recruiting a full-time replacement for Dr Holohan has started.

He thanked Professor Smyth for filling the role “on an interim basis until the completion of an open competition for a permanent CMO”.

Minister Donnelly said: “Professor Smith has a unique skill set with the requisite mix of academic, policy and frontline experience having provided leadership, expert and professional guidance of public health nationally and in HSE West over the last number of years. She has contributed significantly to the national response to Covid-19 in her many roles throughout the management of the pandemic.

"Professor Smyth brings this considerable experience, excellent leadership ability and extensive public health skillset to the role and I very much look forward to working with her.”

The new acting CMO also enjoys an extremely successful parallel life as an accomplished musician – a member of a family who have graced stages across the globe…including last weekend’s Galway Folk Festival when she played in Monroe’s.

A native of Straide, she and her siblings Cora, Maria and Sean – a founder member of the band Lunasa – are no strangers to the spotlight. Cora and Sean, like her sister, are also a qualified doctors and Maria, has a PhD in biochemistry.

"Music was very much a part of our lives," she said in the past. "Our mother, Nancy, was a primary school teacher before we were born, and she brought us to classical music lessons. We played fiddles, tin whistles, bodhrans and piano - we tried out loads of instruments, but we've really remained with the fiddle and tin whistle."

She toured and performed worldwide as a violinist with Michael Flately’s Lord of the Dance and Feet of Flames which included performances at The Ryder Cup and the prestigious Red Cross Ball for the Royal Family in Monaco.

Playing fiddle and tin whistle, she released her debut album ‘Basil and Thyme’ in 2002 and was subsequently nominated as female traditional musician of the year by the ‘Irish Music Magazine’.

She has recorded and performed with many international artists including Paul Brady, Eddie Reader, Sharon Shannon, Gerry Douglas, Luka Bloom, Hazel O’Connor and many more.

Breda Smyth also married into another musical family; her husband is Jimmy Higgins, percussionists with the Stunning and more recently a familiar presence with Christy Moore.

They have two children, Blathnaid and Donal, who is an accomplished soccer player, who left Galway United for a sports scholarship with UCD.