Minister for Health announces 98 additional beds for University Waterford Hospital

The Minister for Health, Stephen Donnelly has announced 98 additional beds are to be provided at University Hospital Waterford by 2031, under the new Acute Hospital Inpatient Bed Capacity Expansion Plan.

The plan has been introduced in response to the ongoing Health Service Capacity Review and aims to bring the number of beds in HSE Dublin Southeast from 2.2 per 100,000 people to 2.6.

This will improve access to hospital in-patient care for patients across Waterford and other parts of the South-East region. The announcement also delivers on the Minister’s commitment to ensure balanced regional bed capacity and to ensure patients across Ireland have equity of access.

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Commenting, Minister Donnelly said: “It is vital that our health service responds to the healthcare needs of the population, and we must deliver improvements that respond to changing demographics. I’m confident that this plan will help to deliver a better service for people across the South-East.

“We’re building on the significant developments in the region in the last few years and with additional capacity in acute inpatient beds we are moving closer to our goal of ensuring that people receive the right care in the right place at the right time.”