Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 28 April 2015
283. Deputy Alan Farrell asked the Minister for Health the progress in the development of the national children's hospital on the Saint James's Hospital site in Dublin 8; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16472/15]
View answerThe National Paediatric Hospital Development Board is the statutory body responsible for planning, designing, building and equipping the new children's hospital. The new hospital will be co-located with St James's Hospital, and ultimately tri-located with a maternity hospital to be developed on campus. In addition to the main hospital, the project includes two satellite centres at the campuses of Tallaght and Connolly Hospitals.
The Project Brief, which sets out details of the specialties to be provided and the planned accommodation, has been approved. 384 in-patient beds are planned, all in single en-suite rooms with in-room parent accommodation. There will also be 85 daycare beds and 14 theatres, including three hybrid theatres to facilitate access to imaging during surgery, all in the main hospital. There will be 111 outpatient consulting examination rooms across the main hospital and the two satellite centres, as well as ED and urgent care facilities.
Site surveys and investigations have been completed, decant plans are being progressed, and a design team is working on detailed design development with planning submission to be made in mid-2015. Subject to planning, work is scheduled to commence at the main site at St. James's, and at satellite centre sites at Connolly and Tallaght, in January 2016.
