Kim Doheny becomes first patient at Cork University Hospital cystic fibrosis ward

A young woman with cystic fibrosis who travelled from Waterford to Cork University Hospital for treatment last month, but was sent home when there were no beds available, was the first person admitted to the hospital’s new respiratory ward at the weekend.

Kim Doheny, 27, was devastated to find she could not get a bed after making the two-hour trip to CUH in September, though a 20-bed respiratory ward remained closed due to staffing shortages.

She was forced to return home to Waterford before getting a call the following day to tell her a bed had become available. When she returned to CUH she was not admitted to an isolation room, which is best practice for patients with CF, to reduce the risk of potentially life-threatening cross infection.