New national childrens hospital for Dublin.

02 Jun, 2006

A new national childrens hospital is to be built on the campus of Dublins Mater Misericordiae University Hospital in the northern inner city. The heath service executive has confirmed the recommendations of a task force set up to find the ideal site for the new 380-bed hospital, which will eventually replace the three childrens hospitals in Crumlin, Temple Street and Tallaght. The hospital, which is expected to take between five and seven years to build at a cost of around 500 million, will incorporate a maternity unit specialising in high-risk deliveries, 54 intensive care beds and 285 in-patient beds.

The Mater hospital has recently been awarded a heathcare accreditation from the Irish health services (IHSAB) which recognises centres of excellence, making it the first major teaching hospital in Ireland to receive the award.