Minister hails landmark day for Dublin’s new maternity hospital

THE lodging of a planning application for the new National Maternity Hospital last week was described as a “landmark day” by the Minister for Health, Simon Harris.

Speaking during a visit to the site at St Vincent’s with Dr Rhona Mahony and James Menton, Chairman of St Vincent’s University Hospital, the Minister said he was delighted to confirm that a planning application for the new National Maternity Hospital had been submitted to An Bord Pleanála.

“I am passionate about improving the safety and quality of our maternity services,” the minister said.

“The lodgement of the planning application is a milestone in the development of the future infrastructure we want for our maternity services so today is a landmark day.

“The National Maternity Strategy is entitled ‘Creating a Better Future Together’ and that is exactly what we are doing through this project.

“We are going to provide women with an appropriate environment where they can deliver their babies in safety, in comfort, and with their privacy respected.

“The project constitutes the largest single investment ever to be made in maternity services in Ireland.

The new development will cater for up to 10,000 births per annum and will include state-of-the-art obstetrics and gynaecology care facilities, including five operating theatres, 50 Neonatal Intensive Care and Special Care single cot rooms, 24 delivery rooms, Emergency and Out-patient Departments, ultrasound facilities and single in-patient rooms.

The development will also include the provision of enhanced facilities for shared services for the overall campus to include catering/canteen facilities.

Additionally, a number of displaced St Vincent’s University Hospital facilities will be re-provided as part of the project.