A NEW play area for children and a room for adolescents has been officially opened at St Luke’s Hospital, Rathgar.
Minister for Health, Simon Harris, cut the red tape on the new area that is part of the wider St Luke’s Radiation Oncology Network (SLRON).
The event was also attended by senior management from SLRON, Dublin Midlands Hospital Group, Department of Health, the National Cancer Control Programme (NCCP), the Friends of St Luke’s (FOSL) and patients and their families.
St Luke’s Hospital is the only centre providing radiotherapy treatment for children.
In 2016, 40 children were treated at the hospital, with each child receiving several weeks of daily treatment.
The treatment regime can require very young patients and their parents to spend several hours each day in the hospital’s Radiotherapy Department.
While toys were previously available, there was no child-friendly indoor space for children to occupy while they waited for their treatment or while they were being monitored post-treatment.
It was recognised that better play and recreational facilities at the hospital were important to help children and their families during their cancer treatment.
In 2015, a multi-disciplinary group was established to develop an indoor play area within the hospital.
The group also worked to develop an adjacent ante-room as an adolescent area, in recognition of their differing needs from younger children.
In September, 2015 the Friends of St Luke’s came on-board with the project and approved funding for the new areas.
Several families contributed to the project and provided an extensive range of toys and equipment for the children.
Amongst these families were David and Tina Fitzgerald, parents to Katie (16), who was treated at St Luke’s but who passed away in 2007.
They organised a Black-tie Ball to raise funds for the Adolescent Room.
Alan and Valerie Farrell, parents of Ben (5), who was also treated at the hospital but who sadly passed away in August last year, donated toys for the playroom.