Chief Medical Officer Dr Tony Holohan has raised concerns about the rising number of coronavirus cases in nursing homes.
Data covering the cases up until midnight on Tuesday show there have been 38 outbreaks in those settings so far, with most of them in the east of the country.
A cluster refers to three or more cases being identified in a location within a 72-hour period.
11 cases have also been identified in residential institutions.
Image: HPSCDr Holohan said dealing with clusters in nursing homes has to be a priority.
He observed: "We now need to move our focus to those institutional settings, which characteristically in terms of these kinds of viral infections - like flu - become locations in which transmission tends to happen at a greater rate than the population generally.
"We have to focus on those locations now."
The HSE will be contacting each individual nursing home in the country, with infection control training set to be provided to staff in the country's nursing homes.
Health officials are continuing to urge anyone aged over 70 to remain at home, and to call on family or friends for any essential food and prescription shopping.
The most recent data shows more than 800 people over the age of 65 have been diagnosed with the virus.
Last night, the Department of Health confirmed another 22 deaths from COVID-19, bringing the death toll to 120.
The median age of yesterday's reported deaths was 80.
Officials also yesterday said 424 new cases have been confirmed, with the total number now standing at 4,273.
Dr Holohan said the next seven to ten days will be "crucial" for knowing when the coronavirus will be at its peak in Ireland.
He said if the 'wave' of cases continues to grow at a lower rate than once forecast, the overall peak will be lower and further into the future.
