The Directorate of Health

About the Directorate of Health

To advance good and safe health care services, health promotion, and effective disease prevention.

Health and well-being based on health promotion, disease prevention, and accessible and safe health care supported by the best knowledge and experience available at any given time.

The main responsibilities of the Directorate of Health are guided by the Medical Director of Health and Public Health Act no. 41/2007:

To advise the Minister of Health and other Government bodies, health professionals, and the public on health, disease prevention, and health promotion matters.
To sponsor and organise public health initiatives, along with monitoring their effectiveness.
To promote improvements in health care quality.
To supervise the health care services and health care professionals.
To monitor prescription medicines and promote their prudent use by individuals and health care professionals.
To collect and process health and healthcare services data and promote research in that field. This includes maintaining national registers on health, diseases, drug prescriptions, births, deaths, and the work and performance of health services.
To handle complaints from healthcare users.
To issue licenses to practice to health care professionals and ensure that their education meets requirements at all times.
To be responsible for the implementation of infectious disease control measures, cf. the Act on Health Security and Communicable Diseases,

At the Directorate of Health, the Chief Epidemiologist is responsible for communicable disease control under the authority of the Minister.

The main responsibilities of the Chief Epidemiologist, according to the Act on Health Security and Communicable Diseases No. 19/1997, are the following:

Organizing and coordinating communicable disease control and vaccination programmes (immunizations) throughout the country, including issuing guidelines on responses to epidemics.
Maintaining a national registry covering infectious diseases, their causative agents, diseases caused by toxic and radioactive substances, unusual and unexpected events which may cause severe health consequences of international concern, as well as antibiotic use and vaccinations.
Regularly, and as required, providing physicians and other healthcare professionals with information on the spread of infectious diseases, within Iceland and abroad.
Serving as an advisor to physicians and others involved in communicable disease control.
Overseeing preventive measures against infectious diseases, including public information and education on these matters.
Acting as Iceland’s National Focal Point with the World Health Organization in accordance with the provisions of the International Health Regulations.
Conducting epidemiological investigations into the origin of infections and, where appropriate, initiating contact tracing when a cluster of infections or an epidemic occurs that may threaten public health.
Making recommendations to the Minister on whether public health control measures should be implemented.
Managing national emergency stockpiles of medicines, as listed in regulations, and other necessary equipment required to respond to health threats such as epidemics or other threats.

To provide and issue professional guidelines and instructions.
To maintain a registry of all providers of health care.
To publish regular reports on the critical factors regarding the quality of health.
To assess the quality and effectiveness of health care services.

A comprehensive legal framework guides the Directorate of Health and its objectives and functions: