€4m emergency department opens in Tralee

A new €4m emergency department (ED) opens at Kerry General Hospital in Tralee today.

The most modern facility of its type in the country, it will cater for about 33,000 people annually.

Features of the building include a dedicated X-ray examination facility, improved treatment areas for dealing with major traumas, more space for each treatment area, an enhanced resuscitation area and specialist facilities for obstetrics, ear, nose and throat and eye conditions.

Up to 15% of those using the hospital’s emergency services are children, who will now be treated in a separate area from adults in the ED. It will also have better facilities for families of critically ill patients, bereavement services and patient counselling.

The ED will be staffed by two consultants in emergency medicine, Dr Jason Carty and Dr Martin Boyd, nine junior doctors and three specialist nurses.

This represents a marked improvement on staffing levels in the old ED, which had six junior doctors and no consultant in emergency medicine.

Hospital general manager PJ Harnett said the building offered levels of privacy and dignity that were compromised in the old ED.

Clinical director Dr Richard Liston paid tribute to the huge efforts made by all staff, including many who have recently retired, which enabled the project to reach fruition.

“We now not only have a state of the art new Emergency Department, but also two new ED consultants, significantly enhancing the hospital’s ability to cater both for major emergencies and also to deliver on the targets required under the National Clinical Programme for Emergency Medicine.”

Teaching and training opportunities would also follow, Dr Liston added, and he hoped the new department would attract healthcare professionals eager to learn in a new, enriched environment.