Work on new mortuary unit for South East to get underway in January
Work on the new mortuary unit at University Hospital Waterford (UHW) will get underway early in the New Year.
Waterford Deputy David Cullinane said the Health Service Executive (HSE) has given the green light for contracts to be signed with a building contractor to carry out the work.
Speaking after a meeting between local Oireachtas and hospital management earlier today, the Sinn Féin TD said the contracts would be signed next month, with construction getting underway in January.
Deputy Cullinane told KilkennyNow.ie: “This is very good news that work on the new mortuary unit is advancing. Unfortunately, it took seven years and for consultants at the hospital to go public about the state of the unit, but it’s very welcome that we’re going to see construction on a new state-of-the-art facility getting underway soon.”
Earlier this year shocking revelations emerged about the mortuary unit at our regional hospital after it emerged that four senior consultant pathologists wrote to HSE chiefs complaining of bodies left languishing on trolleys due to a lack of space, often leaking bodily fluids, with relatives unable to view the remains.
The scandal only came to public attention when the consultants’ internal letter to management was released under a Freedom of Information request to the Waterford News & Star newspaper.
