Handover of €59 million Letterkenny Community Hospital expected in third quarter

Letterkenny’s new €59 million 110-bed community nursing unit is on schedule to be handed over in third quarter of 2026.

Speaking after the Oireachtas and Health Forum Donegal meeting, the Minister of State for Sport and Postal Policy, Charlie McConalogue, said he was delighted with the positive update on the project given by Dermot Monaghan, Donegal’s Integrated Healthcare Area Manager.

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“This new community hospital in Letterkenny represents one of the largest single investments in healthcare in Donegal," he said. "Once it is up and running to its full capacity, it will be a tremendous asset to the people of Letterkenny and Donegal.

“The period of commissioning has commenced, so things like furniture are being ordered ahead. In relation to recruitment, approval has been given for a number of key posts and the HSE management is currently looking at how it can sequence the opening.

“A lot of training and preparation is going into this process and a formalised report on the new Letterkenny hospital will be presented at the next meeting of the Oireachtas and Health Forum Donegal, which is due to take place in early June. The new hospital is expected to be fully operational in the first quarter of 2027.

“The handover from the main contractor, Boyle Construction, will take place in the third quarter of 2026, with the date still to be confirmed."

The 9,400-square-metre development will include a mix of long-stay, short-stay, rehabilitation and dementia care with associated resident accommodation including dining rooms, kitchenettes, residential areas with family overnight room, visitor’s room, treatment room and hairdresser’s salon. The facility will also provide a purpose-built rehabilitation centre, providing physiotherapy, occupational therapy and allied health professional space.

Also welcoming the pace of progress of the new 110-bed facility, Letterkenny Mayor, Cllr Ciaran Brogan, said: “The provision of a community hospital for Letterkenny has been one of my main priorities during my time as a Donegal representative on the Regional Health Forum since it was established in 2005.

“The sod for this new state-of-the-art building was turned in November 2023 at Kilmacrennan Road and it’s great to see things taking shape almost two and a half years on.

“Donegal was allocated almost €36 million to enhance its existing health services and develop new facilities under the recently announced Health Service Capital Plan. €20 million of that will go to funding the completion of the Letterkenny Community Nursing Unit which will act as a much-needed stepdown service for Letterkenny University Hospital."