Malcolm Noonan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Senator for giving me the opportunity to provide an update to the House on the replacement 92-bed community nursing unit, CNU, at St. Vincent’s hospital in Athy, County Kildare. I know the Senator has raised this on many occasions and I am happy to provide this response on behalf of the Minister for Health.

The hospital, first built in 1844, provides rehabilitation, respite and extended care to both male and female residents with the majority of residents over 65 years of age. The standard of care delivered to residents in public units is generally really high, but we recognise that many of our community hospitals are housed in buildings that are less than ideal in the modern context. Without them though, many older people would not have access to the care that they need. It is important therefore that we upgrade our public bed stock, and the purpose of the HIQA compliance CNU replacement programme is to replace, upgrade and refurbish these care facilities, as appropriate, across the country. The CNU at St. Vincent’s, Athy, is part of this programme.

A design team has been appointed to progress the CNU at St. Vincent’s Hospital, Athy. The design for the overall scheme of this development has been adjusted to account for lessons learned from the Covid-19 pandemic.The new facility will provide for over 7,000 sq. m. of total floor area, including single-storey dementia wards, over a phased build and will see the demolition of the five single-storey prefab wings attached to the existing protected structure. This project will be completed in two phases, with the 48-bed unit to be delivered as part of the first construction phase at the rear of the site. The second phase will entail the addition of 44 beds, including two ten-bed dementia units and three associated courtyards, over one and two storeys.

The project was included in the capital programmes for 2022 and 2023. An application for planning permission was submitted by the HSE in the third quarter of 2022. I am pleased to confirm that planning permission was granted for the phased construction of the 92-bed CNU on 2 August 2023. The scope of this project will enable the HSE older persons services to decant and vacate the protected structure building. All capital development proposals must progress through several approval stages, in line with the public spending code, including detailed appraisal, planning, design and procurement, before a firm timeline on a funding requirement is established.

The delivery of the capital project is a dynamic process and is subject to the successful completion of the various approval stages. This project is now progressing through stage 2c, the detailed design and tender process. The final decision to proceed with construction cannot be made until the tender process has been completed and the costings reviewed to ensure the proposal delivers value for money and remains affordable and that sufficient funding is available to fund the project to completion, including equipping and commissioning costs. I hope the Senator will agree this is good news, as we are making significant progress.