Dr Ronan Glynn has said that NPHET is fully aware of the increasing frustrations and difficulties that lockdown has on the public.
On Monday evening, health authorities announced 575 new cases of the virus, but thankfully no further deaths.
Despite the positive news that Ireland's death toll hasn't increased further, Dr Glynn was asked about the wider issues that are impacting the Irish public.
"The remit is to protect public health. I fully accept that," he said.
"NPHET's job is to look at this disease and to prevent what we've seen previously with this disease. That doesn't mean that we don't take cognisance of all of those issues, in particular, we take cognisance of the core priorities that we go on about ad nauseam.
"So, protecting, in particular, non-Covid social care and health services. They're only beginning to get back up and running.
"The impact that the last couple of months had on people waiting for elective surgery, outpatient appointments, to see their GP for non-Covid illnesses, we're cognisant of all that.
"We're very cognisant of the mental health and wellbeing issues that this pandemic has led to but no more so than the effect that has been had on people as a result of the mortality associated with this pandemic.
"Yes, we're cognisant. Of course, we are. We're all living in this society. We all have families and friends who are out of jobs, whose business have closed. We're not living in a bubble where we don't hear these stories, where our families aren't effect by these stories.
"We've got people who live in nursing homes, so we're aware of all that but our job in the first instance is to protect public health.
"If we don't focus on this disease and if we're not the voices that say 'if we're not careful', then other voices will be louder and we'll have what we had previously in this country.
"Our job is to advise against that and to get us through the next couple of months, to stop people dying - people who otherwise could be vaccinated and go on to live for years ahead with their families - but we have to get over April and May.
"We've got to get through this period and it's not easy, I don't envy people who have to make decisions around this.
"We make recommendations and others make decisions. I don't envy their job, but our job is to provide advice in relation to this disease."
