Commissioning Progress at the National Children’s Hospital Ireland (NCHI) - March 2026

Expanded Early Access to Key Hospital Areas

Since December, CHI has progressively taken early access to major clinical and operational areas of the hospital, allowing teams to accelerate preparation work ahead of full handover.

To date, CHI and National Paediatric Hospital Development Board (NPHDB) have installed circa 7,680 pieces of equipment during early access on levels 6, LG and L0. CHI and NPHDB have also taken delivery of equipment for other floors and are storing it on the Lower Ground Floor for rapid deployment post-substantial completion

Timeline so far this year:

• Level 6, accessed in December, is now fully fitted out, with all planned medical equipment installed. This floor also temporarily holds equipment being prepared for other levels as access is phased.
• In February, CHI received early access to the Lower Ground Floor, which includes laboratories, kitchen areas, health technology management (HTM) spaces, and key support infrastructure.
• In March, early access was extended to areas on the Ground Floor, home to some of the hospital’s largest and most complex clinical areas, including the Emergency Department and Imaging.

These early access arrangements allow teams to undertake detailed equipment installation, systems configuration and logistical planning, even though the hospital is not yet certified for clinical use.

Preparing for Further Access

CHI is currently planning for early access to Level 1 and Level 2, which house the theatres and critical care services, later in the spring. These areas are among the most technically complex in the hospital and are essential to final commissioning and readiness testing.

Equipment Installation Progress

Significant progress has been made on equipment installation across the building:

• 15% of medical equipment is now installed
• 14% of non‑medical equipment is in place
• 21% of laboratory equipment has been deployed
• 16% of ICT infrastructure has been installed

Commissioning Beyond the Building

Commissioning extends well beyond fitting out physical spaces. The Commissioning team continues to finalise plans for crucial commissioning activities such as: staff training, trial runs, loading consumables and patient migration

• Staff training and familiarisation, through structured programmes
• Operational trial runs, testing how teams, technology and systems function together
• Stocking of consumables, numbering several hundred thousand items
• Planning for patient migration, ensuring a safe and carefully managed transition

Teams are coordinating closely to ensure these elements progress in tandem, so that every department is fully prepared once the hospital is handed over.

Next Steps

Full handover of the hospital will occur at substantial completion, when building systems are formally certified and safely signed[GS4] off. Updated timelines for this milestone are currently being finalised, with further updates to follow.

Acknowledging the Teams Involved

This progress reflects the sustained effort of multidisciplinary teams across commissioning, laboratories, ICT, health technology management, HR and clinical services, all working collaboratively to maximise every area of the hospital as it becomes available.

Despite the scale and complexity of the project, each month brings visible and meaningful progress as the new National Children’s Hospital moves closer to welcoming patients, families and staff.