A purpose-built facility for treating children with congenital heart conditions has opened at Our Lady’s Children’s Hospital in Crumlin.
The Children’s Heart Centre, which includes a 25-bed dedicated infant and child cardiac unti as well as support accommodation for families and staff, was built at a cost of €4.5 million.
The hospital treats all of Ireland’s young cardiac surgical patients, many of whom come within hours of being born. One in every 100 babies born on the island has a congenital heart defect and most require surgery. Children and their families can spend weeks, month and even up to a year in the hospital depending on the severity of their condition.
The money for the new centre was raised entirely by private donations and fundraising contributions through the FixCrumlin.ie fundraising campaign.
Although the hospital, along with two other Dublin children’s hospitals, is due to move to St James’s when the new national children’s hospital is built, the delay in advancing this project necessitated an interim fundraising campaign at Crumlin.
"Our cardiac teams deliver world class care with proven outcomes that compare favourably to UK and International standards", said Dr Orla Franklin, consultant paediatric cardiologist at Crumlin. "But our patients and their families have had to endure unacceptably inadequate conditions on wards that were built in the 1950s and 1960s.
“The moment we bring our patients through the doors on to this stunning new ward will be a very emotional one, not only for the families but for staff also.”
Dr Franklin expressed gratitude to ordinary people and businesses who made donations and helped to raise the money.
