Staff shortages and poor communication have been highlighted in a review of the deaths of four teenagers and a baby while in care.
The National Review Panel has published five reports into the deaths of a seven-month-old baby, two 15-year-olds and two 16-year-olds.
While there is no evidence that action or inaction on the part of Tusla, the child and family agency, contributed to their deaths the NRP said the reviews did find evidence of poor practice.
NRP Chairperson Dr Helen Buckley said that "some of these reviews reveal the level of pressure being experienced by social work departments due to increased reporting and shortages of staff".
She also said "in addition, reports show evidence of an emerging and problematic gulf between health services and social work departments following the separation of child protection services from the HSE".
The NRP was set up in 2010 as part of the Implementation Plan associated with the Report of the Commission to Inquire into Child Abuse (also known as the Ryan Report) to review deaths and serious incidents of children in care.
Rise in child deaths in 2016, says National Review Panel report
A review was carried out into the death of Dylan who died just before his 17th birthday while in a residential unit.
The coroner found high levels of toxicity in his system.
The review found that there were gaps in management and supervision which were attributed by staff to a high turnover of social workers and pressure of work which led to "firefighting".
Harry was seven months old when he died from Sudden Unexpected Death in Infancy.
His mother had allegedly been the victim of domestic violence and he was referred to the social work department when he was two months old.
The review into his death found that responses to concerns about Harry and his family were slow with none of the services communicating interactively.
It found that there was no connection, however, between his death and any action or inaction on the part of Tusla.
Joe took his own life when he was aged 15.
An overview of his case showed that he experienced neglect over many years due to parental alcohol misuse, alleged domestic violence in the home and a lot of instability.
The NRP found that his case should have received consistent intervention from an early age but a number of practice weaknesses were evident in how his situation was handled.
His case had been listed as high priority for over a year prior to his death but it could not be allocated because of staff shortages.
Staffing issues were also highlighted in the review of the death of Tim, who also took his own life when he was 15.
At the time he was living with his half sibling Tara because of his mother's addiction issues.
The review found that no assessment was made of Tara's capacity to care for Tim and his sibling as she was in her early 20s at the time.
Even though the case was allocated to a social worker her ability to give it the time it warranted was compromised.
Avril was almost 17 when she died and had been out of contact with the social work department for nearly two years beforehand.
The review said the rationale for closing her case, that no child protection concerns existed, overlooked Avril's significant vulnerabilities.
The Chief Executive of Tusla has said steps are being taken to address the issues raised in the reviews.
Jim Gibson said the key learning from the reports published today is that good individual supports are not enough without a coordinated, multi agency approach.
Mr Gibson said Tusla has developed a new Child Protection and Welfare Strategy which will be launched later this month.
He said this year Tusla and the HSE published a joint working protocol to support good collaboration and working relationships between the agencies to promote the best interest of children, families and vulnerable adults.
Mr Gibson also said training has been provided to staff across the agency on suicide prevention.
