Maternity hospital to be delayed by a year

THE new €300m National Maternity Hospital will not be completed until well into 2023, a year later than anticipated.

Construction is set to begin in 2020, but it will take threeand-a-half years to complete.

The hospital is expected to proceed with five consultation rooms for doctors seeing private patients, although they may yet be redundant.

The new facility will be built on the campus in St Vincent’s Hospital, Dublin.

However, under proposals in Sláintecare, the blueprint for the future of the health service, it is recommended that private practice be removed from public hospitals.

The feasibility of the plan is currently being examined by a group chaired by Donal de Buitléir and a report is due at the end of the year.

There are five private consultation rooms in a corridor labelled ‘private clinics’ in the hospital plans.

The hospital has defended this, saying that consultants will pay rent for dedicated rooms where they see private patients.

The new maternity hospital will be constructed in accordance with the planning permission granted by An Bord Pleanála.

The HSE said the planning for the hospital – which will move from its cramped location in Holles St – was under way.

A spokeswoman said it was a priority project.

She said: “(Anti-fungal) works to support the development have commenced on site, continued during the summer months and are due to conclude in the last quarter of this year.

“Tenders for site-enabling works, principally comprising temporary facilities, campus services works and service diversions have been received and evaluated.

“These enabling works are programmed to commence on site by the end of 2018 and will continue into 2019.”

Tenders have also been received and evaluated for site preparatory works comprising construction of the multi-storey car-park extension and the new pharmacy block.

“These works are due to commence by year end and will continue for 15 months approximately,” added the spokeswoman.

The detailed design for the substantive development is on-going and is programmed for completion by the end of the year.

“It is anticipated that the tender documents for these substantive works will issue in 2019, with a planned commencement on site in early 2020,” she said.

The construction is expected to take three-and-a-half years following commencement.

Department of Health officials have not been attending planning meetings in the row over the inquiry into the death of Malak Thawley.

However, they are expected to now resume participation in the process.

The construction is expected to take three-and-a-half years