Galway Bay fm newsroom - A team will be appointed in the coming weeks to design a new emergency department for UHG - with a design brief due by late Spring.
Plans are moving forward for a new Emergency Department block at the congested Newcastle hospital.
The latest update follows queries from health forum chairperson, County Councillor Mary Hoade and her fellow forum member City Councillor Padraig Conneely.
Councillor Hoade says it's good news that a design team is being appointed - but the Department of Health must ensure it's delivered quickly.
The HSE says a team will be appointed by the end of October to design the new emergency department building.
The executive is hoping to design and deliver a new 7-storey building with a rooftop plant room at UHG.
The project will accommodate the new 2-floor Emergency Department for the hospital and the relocation of maternity and paediatric services on the top 5 floors.
The development will be completed in stages with the first phase to include the entire main building structure and completion of the new A&E.
The top floors will be detailed and completed at a later stage.
The project will cost an estimated 120 million euro.
