The board of Our Lady's Hospital for Sick Children in Crumlin, Dublin, has decided to meet the external consultants advising on the design of the planned new national children's hospital.
The hospital's decision to engage with RKW consultants follows a meeting it had with Minister for Health Mary Harney during which it says it received clarification in relation to a number of its concerns regarding the new children's hospital.
In January the board of the hospital decided not to co-operate with plans to build the new national children's hospital on the site of the Mater hospital. It said this was against a background of significant concerns expressed by the medical staff, nursing, allied healthcare professionals and administrative staff in relation to the inadequacy of the site at the Mater hospital, access to the site and the process set up to progress the project.
While it has concerns about the move, it said in a statement last night, following a hospital board meeting yesterday, that in light of the clarification provided by Ms Harney it would now accept her invitation to discuss what was required at the new children's hospital with RKW.
Linda Dillon of the Crumlin hospital parents support group said it was a positive move. "We hope this will give the opportunity to address some of their concerns," she said.