Nurse Eileen Fleming enjoys time out with David Corbett in the new Emergency Department at Kerry General Hospital

THE new emergency department at Kerry General Hospital opens its doors to the public today.

Built at a cost of €4m, the new department is more than twice the size of the existing A&E department and will cater for 33,000 attendances each year.

The finished project includes a dedicated X-ray examination facility, as well as treatment areas designed for dealing with major traumas, a resuscitation area, and further specialist facilities for treating patients in obstetrics, gynaecology and ophthalmology.

The new department also includes a separate dedicated facility specifically for children, with its own triage, assessment and treatment areas.

Refurbishment works also begin today on the old emergency department, which is due to be turned into an acute medical assessment unit (AMAU).

Irish Independent