Dublin hospital defends transfer of crib to church

St James's Hospital in Dublin has never had its Christmas crib in the public reception area and has never had a complaint about this policy, according to a hospital spokesman.

He said it had always been hospital practice to put the crib in the church on the grounds near the Rialto gate.

The spokesman was responding to controversy surrounding the step last week to move the crib from the public concourse area to the church.

Reports suggested the move was made to avoid upsetting non-Christian patients, visitors and staff, while commentators described it as "political correctness gone mad".

The spokesman insisted yesterday that the controversy was based on incorrect reports.

"The crib, which was donated to the hospital by a former patient, was put up in the reception area on Thursday and used for that day only as a backdrop for a carol service," he said.

"On Friday it was then moved to the church, where it always has been. That was always the intention. There was no complaint from anybody about it being in the concourse for a day.

"It was always the intention to move it after the carol service and it was consistent with what has happened every year.

"St James's never had a crib in the reception area."

Beaumont Hospital has a crib in the public reception area. Asked if there had been any complaint, a spokeswoman said: "No, not that have come through this [ CEO's] office anyway."

In the Coombe maternity hospital, a crib in the reception area has drawn no complaint, nor has the small one in the public reception area of the Rotunda hospital.

St Vincent's University Hospital has a "fairly substantial crib near the shop at the front" of the hospital and has had no complaints.

Tallaght hospital, which describes itself as "pluralist", has "always had a policy of placing the cribs in prominent locations".

Galway University Hospital does not have a crib in the main reception.

"We have a Christmas tree there and it's up to various departments whether they want to have a crib," a spokeswoman said.

Most departments did have a crib without complaint.

Cork University Hospital has a crib in its Catholic chapel. A spokesman said there were also Church of Ireland and Muslim prayer areas with no cribs and there was no crib in reception.