‘Best in world’ paediatric unit opens at Cork University Hospital

A €5m integrated paediatric academic unit, the first of its kind in Ireland, was officially opened yesterday at Cork University Maternity Hospital and will seek to produce world-best healthcare for children, guests at the unveiling heard.

The unit will combine education, research, and practice to tackle clinical problems such as newborn brain injury, infant seizures, allergy, eczema, and sleep issues while seeking to enhance the long-term wellbeing and development of children.

The 1,400msq facility boasts 32 rooms, including state-of-the-art assessment rooms for clinical studies, seminar rooms, clinical skills rooms, tutorial rooms, offices, and laboratory spaces. It will host both paediatric academic training and the paediatric clinical research arm of the Science Foundation Ireland (SFI)-funded Infant perinatal research centre.