Rising damp at €16.4m hospital forces floor repairs
The HSE South has confirmed extensive repairs are currently being carried out at Dingle Community Hospital in Co Kerry, less than a year after the facility was officially opened.
A number of elderly patients had to be moved to other areas within the hospital while repair work continues in their wards.
The problems with dampness first materialised when staff at the 68-bed nursing unit noticed moisture was seeping up through the floors of the state-of-the-art building from the ground beneath.
Hospital management was notified and the project architect and the project’s building contractors were alerted.
A spokesperson for the HSE said yesterday the key issue was identified as membrane thickness controlling moisture within the floor slabs.
Repair works are being carried out and the HSE has confirmed that there will be no extra costs incurred by the health service or the taxpayer.
The facility in Dingle was built in early 2009 but was not opened until last October due to a protracted stand-off between the HSE and the Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA).
The hospital standards body had refused to register the facility as it was not satisfied it was equipped to meet modern standards of patient care.
It is understood that the main concern was that some of the rooms earmarked for elderly patients were too small to meet strict criteria laid down by HIQA while the issue of inadequate patient privacy was also flagged.
Locals in Dingle commenced their campaign for a new community hospital over a decade ago. It replaced the Dickensian St Elizabeth’s Hospital which was deemed inadequate for the elderly residents.
The land for the new hospital in the west Kerry capital was sold to the HSE for a nominal sum by local residents Shane and Maura O’Connor. The hospital has a wide range of community supports, including convalescent care, respite care and direct GP admissions.
The building also includes a secure unit for patients with dementia.
