A decision is due later this week on a planning application for a proposed 99 bed acute public/private hospital in Tullamore.
John Flanagan Developments lodged the application for the hospital in December last year.
If granted permission the building will be located on the company’s Wellwood Health Campus on the N52 Tullamore bypass.
In 2021 the Flanagan group was granted permission to build a 244 bedroom, four storey nursing home and step down facility on the same site.
Joint Managing Director, Dominic Doheny said the change in focus came about following talks with end users who felt there was a greater need for a hospital to help offset the massive patient waiting lists currently being experienced.
The proposed hospital was described by Mr Doheny as ”high-end” and will include six operating theatres, endoscopy suites and a full range of diagnostic supports which would ”help to address the deficit in such services in the Midlands.”
”Tullamore Regional Hospital serves a population of 405,000 people spread across up to 10 counties,” said Dominic Doheny. ”If we are successful in our application the hospital will be in a position to improve the lives and medical outcomes for the greater midlands region of the country.”
Mr Doheny said Flanagan Developments have been in talks with the HSE and have had ”positive engagement with them.”
He said he is hoping that work can begin on the development at the end of next year, using the familiar steel structure. Safety tests were carried out on the framework last year and 99% of it will remain.
”The new hospital is part of the Wellwood Healthcare Campus” said John Flanagan, Joint Managing Director. ”We expect that 200 plus people will be employed during the construction phase.”
This is the second time Flanagan Developments have applied to build a hospital on the Wellwood site. Construction was well underway and the steel structure on the Tullamore bypass has been in place since the project was shelved in 2008 following the downturn in the economy.
Offaly Local Authority have set a date of February 4 which is next Saturday for making known its decision.
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