Roscommon Hospital receives €7.85 million funding for development of new Rehabilitation Unit

Roscommon Hospital has been approved funding of €7.85 million for the development of a new 20 bed Specialist Rehabilitation Unit which will be located to the rear of the existing hospital building.

Commenting Elaine Prendergast General Manger of Roscommon Hospital said, "We are delighted to have received funding to proceed with this important development. We have been working closely with the National Rehabilitation Hospital in Dun Laoghaire, the national centre, for some time to progress this development. The Unit will provide 20 specialist rehabilitation beds and will be managed in conjunction with the Dun Laoghaire service. This development will provide a much needed specialist rehabilitation beds and provide service that is currently not available anywhere outside of the Dublin centre".

"Roscommon Hospital continues to develop and expand its services as an important part of the Saolta University Health Care Group. The new Endoscopy Unit is currently under construction and I expect it to be operational by the last quarter of 2015. Under the clinical leadership of Ms Deirdre Jones, Plastics and Reconstructive Surgeon we have set up a ‘see and treat’ service, with patients attending the hospital for a consultation and procedure all on the same day.  Last year just over 4,000 patients attended this service including many patients from Donegal. We are continuing to work closely with the Mayo Roscommon Hospice to progress the development of the hospice unit at Roscommon Hospital".

"Services continue to develop at Roscommon Hospital and the data published last week in the Saolta University Health Care Group 2014 Annual Report showed that the number of day cases undertaken at Roscommon Hospital in 2014 had increased by 15% on the previous year and the number of people treated in the Urgent Care Centre was up by over 9% on the 2013 figure”.  

CEO of the National Rehabilitation Hospital in Dún Laoghaire, Derek Greene commented “We greatly welcome the announcement that funding has been approved for the development of a new 20 bed Specialist Rehabilitation Unit at Roscommon Hospital.  In addition to the NRH Capital Project for Dún Laoghaire consisting of 120 replacement beds with integrated therapy services, this is a nationally significant development urgently required to specifically accommodate the needs of patients from throughout Ireland who require complex specialist rehabilitation services. To have these projects completed and operational will be a vital development for the country in the context of the National Rehabilitation Strategy”.

Concluding Elaine Prendergast said, " This announcement demonstrates the important role Roscommon Hospital has to play in the provision of health services not just to the people of County Roscommon but to the population of the wider region".