Conor Lenihan
Ceist:125 Mr. C. Lenihan asked the Minister for Health and Children the plans, if any, he has to allow for full maternity services at the Tallaght Hospital subsequent to its opening in 1998. [2083/98]
Written Answers. - Hospital Services.
The new hospital at Tallaght will be a major acute hospital serving Tallaght, Clondalkin, Firhouse, Rathfarnham, Terenure, Templeogue, west Wicklow and south Kildare with a catchment population of approximately 250,000.
The services currently provided at the Adelaide, the Meath and the National Children's Hospital are being transferred to this new hospital together with acute psychiatric services transferring from St. Loman's Hospital.
Maternity services in Dublin are provided by the Coombe Women's Hospital, the Rotunda Hospital and the National Maternity Hospital, Holles Street.
At the initiative of my Department the three Dublin maternity hospitals established a strategic review group in 1996. The group, with the assistance of an external consultant, has recently completed its strategic review which looks,inter alia, at issues relating to the delivery of maternity services in Dublin and the linkages with acute general hospitals across the city. The emphasis in the group's report is on the provision of integrated gynaecology services utilising the maternity services and facilities provided by the existing maternity hospitals.
Each of the maternity hospitals has an established set of links with the acute general hospitals. In the case of the new hospital at Tallaght, the linkage is with the Coombe Women's Hospital.