Losing bidders disappointed at site decision

The chief losers in the bid to build a new children’s hospital are extremely disappointed their site was overlooked in favour of a campus that does not have all the advantages the losing Mater site had to offer.

The Mater and Rotunda hospitals said the selection of St James’s, which does not have a maternity hospital, meant it fell short of international best practice which saw tri-location as the best option, in other words, that a children’s hospital, an adult hospital, and a maternity hospital all be located on the same campus.

The hospitals also criticised the reliance of the expert group which recommended St James’s on “local” rather than international expertise. Most significantly, they said, switching the project from the Mater to St James’s would cause further delays to a project which had taken six years of planning at the Mater site.

Mater chairman John Morgan said the process to select the Mater site “was rigorous and evidenced- based” and that they could have delivered a new children’s hospital by 2016.

The Rotunda, which supported the Mater bid, said the losing hospital had “the best available combination of relevant adult specialities to support world-class care in the maternity and paediatric arenas”.

Master of the Rotunda, Dr Sam Coulter-Smith, said he “continued to believe that the Mater is by far the best option”.

“The decision does nothing for mothers and babies, there is no maternity as part of this plan, talk of building one in the future is not good enough.”

Meanwhile, the Coombe was left red-faced after a message appeared on its website, before the official site announcement was made, thanking the minister for selecting its campus.

A message attributed to Coombe Master Dr Chris Fitzpatrick said, on behalf of the board and management, that they wished to thank the minister. A spokesperson said it was a “test message” posted in error.

St James’s said it looked forward to bringing the hospital project to fruition “in a timely manner”, while Temple St Hospital, which made its own bid in conjunction with South Dublin County Council, said it was seriously disappointed with the selection of St James’s and intended to hold an emergency board meeting today to consider the implications.

However, the choice of St James’s was backed by the faculty of paediatrics at the Royal College of Physicians of Ireland, with the caveat that it was concerned the facility may not be finished until 2018.

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