In keeping with tradition, the new master of the National Maternity Hospital knocked on the front door of the building yesterday to gain admittance. A loud gong was sounded in the hallway as he was welcomed inside by the matron, Ms Maeve Dwyer, and senior midwifery staff.
Then Dr Declan Keane proceeded to the boardroom to sign a seven-year mastership contract. Afterwards he went to visit the hospital's first baby of 1998. D.J. McDonald came into the world at four seconds past midnight on New Year's Day.
His mother, Mary, from Pearse Street in Dublin, delivered D.J. (David John), her first-born, after "just" 14 hours of labour. Due on Christmas Day, he was a week late. Mother and son were presented with a layette to mark the occasion.
At the signing of the contract, Mr Brian Davy, deputy chairman of the hospital, said "the passing from one master to the next is the basic unit of time in the measure of the life of a hospital like Holles Street".
He thanked Dr Peter Boylan, the previous master, "for his efforts, his determination and above all the care he gave this hospital over many years.
"This is a very serious moment in Declan's life and a very serious moment for Holles Street. He has just become the chief executive of a very large organisation," said Mr Davy.
At 36, Dr Keane, who was accompanied by his wife, Joanne, children Eloise and Gregory, and parents Patrick and Patricia, is the youngest master ever of an Irish maternity hospital. He described Holles Street as "the greatest maternity hospital in the world".
A former assistant master at the hospital, he was appointed consultant obstetrician at the John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford in 1995.
Dr Keane paid tribute to his predecessor, who had brought Holles Street "from a fairly low ebb in 1990 to the leading maternity hospital in Ireland and the British Isles". He cited the liberalisation of the hospital's epidural policy, the provision of improved postnatal facilities and the development of a good public relations policy.
He said he had a number of ambitions for the hospital in the coming seven years and looked forward to bringing them to reality.
Meanwhile the West claimed the State's first baby of the new year, born at a second past midnight in Galway's University College Hospital. Conor Patrick Quinn was delivered to Mrs Mary Quinn, of Ballyhearagh, Cloghan's Hill, Tuam, and her husband, Padraic, just past the midnight bell as storm-force winds swept Galway Bay. He weighed in at 7lb 12oz.
At the Coombe Women's Hospital in Dublin, Mrs Bridie Eves gave birth to baby Sean at five minutes past midnight. He weighed 7lb 12oz. Amy Byrne was born at the Rotunda Hospital in Dublin at 12.01 a.m.. The daughter of Francis and William Byrne, from Swords, she weighed 9lb 7oz.
The first-born baby in the northeast was also the first-born for Caroline and Karl Moran from Greenacres, Dundalk. Their daughter Lauren weighed 8lb 7oz and made her entry into the world 10 minutes into the new year.
Cork's first baby of 1998 arrived 25 minutes into the year weighing 5lb 5oz at St Finbarr's Maternity Hospital. Killian Kiely O'Regan was born to Yvonne O'Regan from Mallow and her partner, Patrick Kiely, from Togher in Cork city. Killian is the couple's first child.