CF facility in idle ward may go ahead

THE Department of Health is considering a U-turn on a decision to refuse €300,000 to a cystic fibrosis (CF) charity which has raised €2 million to transform a closed Cork University Hospital (CUH) ward into an isolation unit for CF patients.

Build4 Life chairman Joe Browne last month accused Health Minister James Reilly “of failing the CF population in Munster” by turning down his organisation’s application for National Lottery funding.

The charity needs just €300,000 to ensure the idle 5B ward at CUH can be transformed into isolation units for CF patients.