Sir, – In response to Senator Michael McDowell's criticism that money might have been better spent building up our intensive-care unit (ICU) capacity than building a children's hospital (Opinion & Analysis, October 14th), Eilish Hardiman, chief executive of Children's Health Ireland, defends the investment on the St James's Hospital site by referring to the creation of 60 critical-care paediatric, cardiac and neonatal beds (Letters, October 22nd).
What Ms Hardiman fails to mention is the astronomical overspend in building the new children’s hospital, which has swallowed up vast sums of badly needed money that could have been used elsewhere, such as building up our adult ICU capacity.
She also does not mention the fact that, despite all the money that’s being spent, critically ill newborn babies who should be born on the site of the new children’s hospital will still be travelling in ambulances to get there, when they should have be given the space to have been born there.
Hardly money well spent, despite the spin. – Yours, etc,
Prof CHRIS
FITZPATRICK,
Consultant Obstetrician
and Gynaecologist,
Coombe Women
and Infants
University Hospital,
Dublin 8.