The Bon Secours Hospital in Co Limerick was officially opened on Monday.
It is the first new acute hospital to open in Ireland in two decades. The €213 million project is one of the largest healthcare investments ever made in the region.
Speaking at the opening, Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport Patrick O’Donovan said the “positive impact” the hospital has and will continue to provide in the region in terms of employment opportunities and expanding access to quality of services and care “cannot be overstated”.
The hospital began a phased opening last September and since then has expanded its services and clinical activities.
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The hospital is now seeing patients through its new hospital access unit.
Its cardiac catheterisation laboratory is performing interventional cardiology and electrophysiology procedures, while interventional vascular procedures were carried out for the first time last week. Diagnostic services have also expanded, with mammography introduced last month.
The midwest region’s first PET (positron emission tomography) CT scanner is now operational at the hospital, having treated its first patients last week. The aim is for the new imaging technology to significantly reduce the need for patients to travel to other regions.
Bon Secours Hospital Limerick currently employs 700 healthcare professionals across clinical, nursing and support roles. The Bon Secours Health System is Ireland’s largest private hospital group and is a not-for-profit organisation.
[ Bon Secours to open new 170-bed hospital in September, creating 300 jobsOpens in new window ]
Its five acute hospitals in Dublin, Cork, Galway, Limerick and Tralee treat 400,000 patients annually and employ more than 400 staff and 500 consultants.
Jason Kenny, chief executive of Bon Secours Hospital Limerick, said: “Our investment represents a major commitment to both patients and the community.
“Every decision, from the design of our rooms to the technology we use, to the recruitment of our teams has been guided by one goal: to deliver safe, compassionate, high-quality care.”
