asked the Minister for Health if there are any proposals before his Department for the provision of hospital beds for the Federated Dublin Voluntary Hospitals on the Elm Park site.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Hospital Bed Provision.
2.
Proposals have been made in the report of the consultative council on the general hospital services for the development of a regional hospital for South Dublin on the Elm Park site which would involve both St. Vincent's Hospital and the Federated Dublin Voluntary Hospitals. Following publication of the report and on the request of my predecessor as Minister for Health, a committee representing St. Vincent's Hospital, the Federated Dublin Voluntary Hospitals and the Dublin Health Authority was established to examine and recommend on the manner in which reorganisation of the hospital services in South Dublin might be brought about. Various negotiations and discussions have since taken place and a firm of planning consultants has, at the request of the federation, carried out a feasibility study on the proposals in the report.
More recently, I have indicated that I was prepared to provide funds for the building of 500 new beds to replace a number of federation units. I suggested that these might be divided equally between St. Kevin's site and Elm Park but that there could be negotiation on this. The federation have decided to accept this offer subject to negotiation about the extent of the allocation between the two sites.
The distribution of these beds cannot be finally determined until the specific nature and organisation of the regional hospital to be provided on the Elm Park site has been agreed upon. These matters are at present the subject of correspondence with the authorities responsible for that institution and I am hopeful that the result of their consideration of the problems involved will be made available to me in the very near future.