The children's department in Tallaght Hospital is set to re-open today but a number of services will not be returning.
From 8am this morning the department, which closed in March as the pandemic gripped Ireland, will re-open offering a 24/7 Emergency Care Unit, medical inpatients, day case surgery and medicine, x-ray and outpatients services.
Plans to move some acute services, including in-patient surgery, neurosurgery and day surgery, were made for when the new National Children's Hospital opens at St James's.
But the coronavirus emergency has accelerated these plans, which will see critically injured children transferred to Crumlin and Temple Street hospitals.
In a statement, Children's Health Ireland said: "Every winter our paediatric service doubles its medical admissions, primarily due to respiratory illness, flu and other viral illnesses.
"This winter, we have a new unknown and additional challenge of COVID-19, which already has decreased our inpatient and day case capacity and patient flow through all areas by approximately 20%.
"As we transition towards a new Urgent Care Centre at Tallaght we are opening on the 3 September as a 24/7 Emergency Care Unit. The difference from a Paediatric Emergency Department is that we are re-directing critically ill and critically injured children to our CHI Emergency Departments at Crumlin and Temple Street Further guidance will be available on our website.
"We have implemented a 24-hour single bed management system and process across our four locations at Crumlin, Tallaght, Temple Street and at Connolly (Connolly Hospital, Blanchardstown) to best manage access to beds and services across CHI.
"This means, if a child needs to be admitted from one of CHI’s Emergency Department/Unit or Urgent Care Centre they may be admitted to an in-patient bed in another hospital in the city. This is a change for the families we serve and for staff in CHI."
CHI are also reminding those who are visiting their hospitals that they should also follow guidance to help us protect patients, their families and staff:
- Face coverings help prevent people who do not know they have the virus from spreading it to others
- Children over 13 years and their parent/guardian should wear a face covering when attending any of CHI’s emergency, urgent care, outpatients, admissions /day wards
- Face coverings are not required for children under 13 years, unless clinically advised
- If a child and their parent/guardian have symptoms, please do not attend our hospitals, call your GP. Don’t become a close a contact by adhering to these practices; wash your hands, social distance, practice good sneeze and cough etiquette, wear masks on public transport, supermarkets, other indoor areas, including healthcare facilities and if you cannot maintain a 2 metres distance from others
