Hospital Facilities Seanad Éireann — 2026-06-11 ============================================================ Mary Butler (FF), Waterford I thank the Senator for raising this important issue and for her constant advocacy for health services in Limerick and the mid-west region. She has worked closely with me on various projects for mental health and I acknowledge that, particularly with regard to CAST in Limerick, which is going from strength to strength. I am taking this on behalf of the Minister for Health, Deputy Carroll MacNeill. As the Senator has alluded to, the Government is working to address the challenges facing acute care in the mid-west. We have listened to the strong advocacy of the people of the region and their representatives. It is important that is acknowledged because the lived experience for many people in Limerick has fallen short. It is important that we keep listening. I recognise the significant pressures at UHL and the impact on patients, families and staff. I commend the vital work of health service staff who continue to provide quality care when people need it most. The independent report by retired Chief Justice Mr. Frank Clarke into the tragic death of Aoife Johnston made 17 recommendations, all of which have been acted on and their implementation concluded in September 2025. Staffing at UHL increased significantly by 42% from December 2020 to April 2026, equating to 4,443 whole-time equivalents. This includes 237 additional doctors, 55 of whom are consultants. Across the mid-west, overall staffing increased by 37% over the same period to 6,179 whole-time equivalents. The subsequent HIQA review identified three potential options. Option A was to expand capacity at UHL Dooradoyle. Option B was to extend UHL to include a second campus nearby and option C was to develop a model 3 hospital in the mid-west, providing a second emergency department for the region. The Minister has accepted this advice. We are not choosing one option over another. We are delivering all three together in a co-ordinated way. At UHL, work is moving quickly on option A. Two new 16-bed units are now in place. A new 96-bed block opened in October 2025. It is state of the art. I have visited it. A further 16-bed unit is due for completion by the end of this year. Contracts for a second 96-bed ward block are expected to be awarded shortly, and a design team has been appointed for a 66-bed block. Ennis, St. John’s and Nenagh hospitals will see an additional 114 beds by 2031. In total, 420 new beds will be delivered across the mid-west between 2024 and 2031. We are also using innovative technology to provide care, with a new virtual ward at UHL now providing 40 virtual care beds. This has worked extremely well in the Dublin region and will hopefully be the same in this case. To progress option B, the Minister mandated the HSE in December to secure a suitable site near the UHL Dooradoyle campus. In March the HSE secured a 44-acre site in Raheen. The site provides a significant opportunity to provide meaningful additional care and health services for the people in the region. Work is under way to establish a mid-west region strategic board. The board will develop a comprehensive strategic plan for the organisation of services and investment across the mid-west to support a sustainable, region-wide model of care. This plan will determine which services must remain on the UHL Dooradoyle campus, which can move to the new Raheen site, and which can be transferred to Ennis, St. John’s or Nenagh hospitals. The Minister for Health remains focused on ensuring that HIQA’s recommendations are implemented in a timely and co-ordinated way, and that people in the mid-west have access to safe, high-quality and reliable care. --- Source: Houses of the Oireachtas. Licensed under CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). The Official Report is revised after first publication; the fetch timestamp below identifies the version quoted. Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/seanad/2026-06-11/debate/main Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:55:03+00:00 Sitting date: 2026-06-11