As it stands the National Children’s and Maternity Hospital is to be built on the St. James’s Hospital site, which would lead to some regeneration of the area, and added local employment too of course.
If you havn’t already viewed the plans put forward by St. James’s Hospital, and their case for the St James’s site being the most viable, here they are…
The following information is taken from the Archive section of the St James’s Hospital website.
St. James’s Hospital remains fully committed to this nationally important development being within the SJH campus.
This updated submission outlines the hospitals ability to satisfy requirements of a National Paediatric Hospital and in particular be capable of accommodating a National Children’s Hospital, associated parent/guardian accommodation, a maternity hospital and space for future related service expansion.
St. James’s Hospital proposal satisfies requirements as set out by Review Group, appropriately enables the development of a model of care which is consistent with the principles established by McKinsey, has direct benefits for children and important strengths necessary to effect a true tri-location of paediatric, maternity and adult services on a single campus. These being as follows:
Patient / Family
The proposal provides for the development of an integrated model of child care, truly compliant with the principles identified by McKinsey and necessary for tri-location of paediatric, maternity and adult services.
Clinical Benefits / Synergies
Development of the National Paediatric Hospital on the SJH campus will present an unprecedented opportunity to effect further development of significant clinical synergies which already include a range of specialities on the campus including;
• National Adult and Paediatric Burns, Plastic Surgery
• Clinical Dermatology
• Cardiology
• Cardiothoracic Surgery
• Clinical Immunology
• Medical Oncology
• Haematological malignancies – National Bone Marrow Transplant units
• Haematological conditions (benign) including sickle cell anaemia and coagulation disorder
There are existing services on the SJH campus which will become integral providers of care to both children and adults:
• Irish Blood Transfusion Service
• Radiation Therapy
• Interventional Radiology
• National Centre for Pharmoeconomics
• PET / CT service (public)
• Pharmacy and compounding facility
• National Maxillofacial Surgery Unit
• Centre for Advanced Medical Imaging (CAMI)
Research and Development
A key component of the proposed development would be the building of an integrated Institute of Child Health and Women’s Health Institute, both of which can be physically linked to the current Institute of Molecular Medicine Building and share core facilities and expertise. The Institutes would operate under a governance structure which would seek to promote the full engagement of UCD, TCD, UCC, UCG and RCSI. This development would represent one of the largest on site research facilities in Europe. The range and depth of clinical and scientific expertise will attract and retain the highest quality academic and clinical staff resulting in enormous social, economic and healthcare benefits.
Clinical Support Service Functions
SJH already has the largest pharmacy, radiology and laboratory service within the state. The laboratory currently operates as a tertiary care centre for paediatrics in haematology and immunology.
Corporate Functions – Shared Services
The existing SJH contemporary ICT Business systems and processes are already comparable with best international practice and have been seen as a model which can be extended to underpin financial management and control within the wider Irish health system in the future. In fact, a project is already underway to extend business processes and systems developed in SJH to OLCHC, CWIUH, OLHC (Hospice), and Tallaght Hospital. It is envisaged that the SJH proposal will enable the National Paediatric Hospital to seamlessly benefit from already developed business processes and systems.
Operational Savings
SJH proposal estimate operational annual savings of circa €32 million based upon Tri-location model. This development provides excellent value for public money.
Philanthropy
SJH has proven record for attracting high level of philanthropic and research funding for development on the campus. Locating the National Children’s Hospital on the campus creates unique opportunity for “cradle to end of life” medicine and research therefore expanding possibilities for further philanthropic and research funding.
Access
SJH is recognised as “high level of accessibility” by Dublin City Council with three Luas stops, capacity for increased public/patient car parking with enhanced new access points to the campus including dedicated Quality Bus Corridor agreed with the City Council.
Site Size and Availability
The site provides 6.3 hectares for the development (Approximately 15 acres). The site proposed has very limited decanting requirements and thereby prompt access to site for development commencement (< 6 months). The land is ‘owned’ by HSE/SJH and therefore there are no purchase or third party.
Site Capital Development
The proposed construct is felt to match the planning requirements and has no major site or size constraints that will limit the creation of contemporary paediatric and maternity facilities, or the ongoing necessary development of the adult hospital. Subject to planning, it is anticipated that the co-location of the National Paediatric Hospital can be effected by 2015.
Cost comparisons:
The projected capital costs for the development at St. James’s Hospital have been prepared and are benchmarked against contemporary international hospitals as follows:
National Children’s Hospital
Building Works etc. – €358,190,000
VAT – €45,390,000
Fittings(1) including VAT – €80,000,000
Total – €483,580,000
Maternity Building
Building Works etc. – €83,875,000
VAT – €10,479,000
Fittings(1) including VAT – €25,000,000
Total – €119,354,000
(1) Allowance for Equipment
Note: Building Works include, site preparation, demolition works, new building, underground car park, external roads, paving, landscaping, fees and capital contributions and levies.
The capital costs for the development at St. James’s Hospital compare favourably against current alternative development costs.
Conclusion
St. James’s Hospital proposal is believed to be:
• Accessible to all
• Best site location for Dublin and Ireland
• Buildable
– Site fit on the campus with 15 acres (6.31 Hectares) available
– Timely delivery – commencement on vacant site <6 months post planning consent
- Cost effective - value for public money
• Delivers on the majority of require clinical synergies necessary to effect bi-location and tri-location
• Enables the managed delivery of adolescent care / transition to adult care
• Creates necessary research & education synergies / facilities for Paediatric, Adolescent, Maternity and Adult Medicine
• Offers true opportunities for the creation of necessary shared services and business corporate platform
St James’s Hospital believes this proposal represents the best campus location to build the National Paediatric & Maternity Hospitals.
Here are some ariel views and a map of the proposed Irish National Children’s and Maternity Hospital @ St James’s in Dublin 8. Images are by John Cooper Architects, London.
No mention of the jobs that will be lost when the kitchen in james’s is knocked down to make way for the children’s hospital and ready made meals are imported from steamplicity in the UK. More money leaving the country as if things aren’t bad enough already!!!
Hi Fintan, I’m not sure if that comment is aimed at my intro (“As it stands the National Children’s and Maternity Hospital is to be built on the St. James’s Hospital site, which would lead to some regeneration of the area, and added local employment too of course”), or if you are saying that St. James’s haven’t included the job losses in the plans we republished above. But its an interesting point all the same!
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If you are referring to my comment, what I stated is “added local employment”. It’s a generalisation. I am basically referring to the fact that when you take into consideration the jobs that may be lost or moved, as opposed to the introduction of a massive new facility (the new hospital) with a substantial mostly-new-to-the-area workforce, there will indeed be “added local employment”. Its simple mathematics. And of course, the new people coming into the area may also pump money into the local economy, which may also help with local external employment. As will the new hospital itself externally, if it avails of local services too.
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As for the steamplicity meals, I spent many years handing the likes of them to patients in NHS hospitals, and they just don’t seem nutritious enough or appealing enough to aid a healthy recovery. But Irish hospital meals (made in-house) do seem better in some cases, but in some of Dublins biggest hospitals they have been not a great deal better in my experience! Fresher cooking/ingredients possibly, but bland and unappealing, and I would like to see results of nutritional comparisons with NHS hospital food. Although in Ireland a larger proportion of patients actually get visitors, who often supplement by bringing in food that’s a bit better, at least on occasion. However, in my experience – In London at least – most patients get little or no visitors, so they have no choice but to eat those pre-prepared meals that NHS hospitals serve up. Have to agree with you on that point, I do not like to see those meals become the norm anywhere!
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Fintan, if you have any more info about those job losses, could you send it to info@frg.ie, and mark it for my attention. Or on any other local issues, cheers, Damien Hughes