More than 8,000 babies born at Coombe last year

The Coombe Women's Hospital has reported a rise in the number of births last year, but a drop in the amount of Caesarean sections being carried out.

In its latest annual report, the hospital says more than 8,000 babies were delivered in 2006 and more than 7,000 operations were carried out.

One hundred and forty-one sets of twins, three sets of triplets and one set of quads were born at the hospital.

The majority of mothers were from the Republic of Ireland and just under 40% of all deliveries were to first-time mums.

Nearly one-in-five mothers were still smoking, and almost one in 10 were either under 20 or over 40 years of age.

The Master of the Coombe, Dr Chris Fitzpatrick, says he is concerned about patient safety in all of the maternity hospitals in Dublin.

He says he is worried about inadequate staffing levels and infrastructural deficiencies at a time when birth rates are rising.