Catherine Connolly (Galway West, Independent)
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116. To ask the Minister for Health further to Parliamentary Questions Nos. 1784 and 1785 of 9 September 2024, if the options appraisal process for the masterplan for University Hospital Galway which was due for completion in Q4 2024 has now been completed; if she will furnish a copy of the plan; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [9919/25]

Catherine Connolly (Galway West, Independent)
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137. To ask the Minister for Health further to Parliamentary Questions Nos. 1784 and 1785 of 9 September 2024, the status of the Strategic Assessment Report/Preliminary Business Case (SAR/PBC); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [9920/25]

Jennifer Carroll MacNeill (Dún Laoghaire, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 116 and 137 together.

Galway University Hospitals is proposing a number of projects of significant scale on its University Hospital Galway (UHG) campus on the Newcastle Road, Galway. When complete, these proposals will provide state of the art, Model 4 hospital facilities at UHG for the people of Galway and the HSE West and Northwest Region.

In late 2023, Saolta convened a Capital Programme Oversight Board to develop a clinically-led, holistic master planning approach for the campus, incorporating individual proposals such as a new helipad, additional bed capacity, new emergency department, new paediatric and maternity facilities, labs and cancer centre.

This master planning process has been informed by population health needs and clinical demand for the region. It provides a clear plan for the sequence and delivery of the much-needed new capacity and facilities to meet the needs of Galway and the wider HSE West and Northwest region. The Development Control Plan (DCP) and options appraisal process for the masterplan is in the final stages of development, after feedback from all key stakeholders has been taken into consideration. We expect the final DCP sign-off within the Region in the coming weeks.

The Strategic Assessment Report for the Emergency Department, Women and Children’s Block has been reviewed by my Department and has been returned to the HSE with feedback. This document will now be subsumed into a Strategic Assessment Report/Preliminary Case (SAR/PBC). Saolta’s Capital Programme Oversight Board has been tasked with developing that SAR/PBC into a more integrated and strategic programmatic plan aligned to the wider campus master planning. Work on this programmatic SAR/PBC is currently ongoing.

These proposals will represent a significant investment in UHG and this master planning process will be critical to ensuring that the optimal solutions are being pursued to deliver a modern hospital in as efficient and timely a manner as possible