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St. Fintan's Hospital (Irish: Ospidéal Naomh Fintan) is a psychiatric hospital in Portlaoise, County Laois, Ireland.

History

The hospital, which was designed by William Murphy, opened as the Maryborough Asylum in 1833.[1] It was extended in 1865 and again in 1898.[1] It became Portlaoise Mental Hospital in the 1920s and went on to become St. Fintan's Hospital in the 1950s.[1] In the 1950s and 1960s the hospital's own football team, St. Fintan's Hospital GAA, had some success in local competitions.[2] After the introduction of deinstitutionalisation in the late 1980s the hospital went into a period of decline;[3][4] however the hospital remained open and a contract was signed for major refurbishment works at the hospital in October 2018.[5]

On 15 April 2020, it was reported that, of the 25 people in their care, 8 patients had died of Covid-19 during the Easter weekend in the Maryborough Centre for Psychiatry of Old Age at St Fintan's Hospital.[6]

References

  1. ^ a b c "St. Fintan's Hospital, Dublin Road, Portlaoise, County Laois". National Inventory of Architectural Heritage. Retrieved 30 May 2019.
  2. ^ "Laois Junior Football Championship Roll of Honour". Laois GAA. Retrieved 30 May 2019.
  3. ^ "After the Asylum". Irish Times. 13 July 2013. Retrieved 29 May 2019.
  4. ^ Cotter, Noelle (2009). "Transfer of Care? A Critical Analysis of Post-Release Psychiatric Care for Prisoners in the Cork Region" (PDF). University College Cork. p. 5. Retrieved 29 May 2019.
  5. ^ "Contract signed that paves way for St Fintan's Hospital overhaul". Leinster Express. 11 October 2018. Retrieved 30 May 2019.
  6. ^ Gleeson, Colin; Burns, Sarah; Hilliard, Mark (15 April 2020). "Coronavirus: Eight residents in Co Laois psychiatric centre die from Covid-19". The Irish Times. Retrieved 10 June 2020.
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