Significant investment of over €150m announced across HSE Dublin and North East region

Another significant step in the ongoing development of health services in the north-east of the country, with major developments announced across hospital and community care.

Taken together, the announcements represent an investment of over €150 million in expanding capacity, modernising facilities and improving access to care for the region’s growing population. Together with other recent projects, they form part of a wider programme of investment to strengthen services across the Dublin and North East region.

At Cavan General Hospital, the Minister for Health officially turned the sod on a major extension representing an investment of over €100 million. The development will deliver a new Emergency Department, an expanded Endoscopy Unit and 56 additional inpatient beds, significantly strengthening hospital capacity and supporting safer, more timely care for people across Cavan, Monaghan and the wider North East.

In Navan, the development of a major new Primary Care Centre will now commence. The seven-storey facility will bring a broad range of health and community services together in one modern, accessible location, replacing several dispersed sites and supporting more integrated care, while enabling people to access services closer to home.

The Minister also officially opened the new 18-bed Willowbridge Ward dementia-friendly ward and took in the new Rehabilitation, Dementia and Remembrance Garden at Monaghan Hospital. These developments provide a more therapeutic, accessible and dementia-inclusive environment, supporting the dignity, independence and wellbeing of patients, and reflecting the region’s focus on improving care for older people.

The announcements reflect the HSE’s regional approach to planning and delivering services for a growing and changing population in Dublin and North East. They also support Sláintecare by strengthening hospital capacity and expanding primary and community services so that people can receive the right care, in the right place, as close to home as possible. Further developments are planned for Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital in Drogheda, including increased capacity and expanded services.

They come just four weeks after the opening of the new €30m Dublin North East Surgical Hub, which provides dedicated capacity for high-volume, same-day procedures and consultations while helping to reduce waiting lists and ease pressure on acute hospitals.

Sara Long, Regional Executive Officer, HSE Dublin and North East region, said:

“This was another significant day for health services across the Dublin and North East region. Investment of over €150 million was announced across hospital and community services, building on the opening of our new Surgical Hub four weeks ago.

Our region has one of the largest and fastest-growing populations in the country.

These investments are a key part of how we respond to that growth, increasing capacity and developing services that can meet the changing needs of patients, families and communities.

They also reflect the direction set out in Sláintecare. We are investing in modern hospital infrastructure and additional capacity, while strengthening primary and community care so that more people can access the right care, in the right place and as close to home as possible.

It was particularly encouraging to see all three events so well attended by Ministers, TDs, Senators and councillors from across the political spectrum, reflecting broad support for these developments and for the staff who deliver care every day.

I want to pay tribute to the teams in Cavan, Monaghan and Meath, and to our colleagues in HSE Capital and Estates, whose expertise and commitment have been central to bringing these projects to fruition. Together, these announcements represent substantial progress in building a more integrated and responsive health service for the communities we serve, and we will continue to build on this momentum in the months and years ahead.”

The HSE Dublin and North East region will continue to progress investment and service developments across its hospital and community services, with a focus on improving access, expanding capacity and delivering high-quality, integrated care for its growing population, while strengthening services for the future.