THE HIGH COURT has appointed provisional liquidators to wind down Mount Carmel Hospital in Dublin today following a petition by its directors.

The private hospital specialises in maternity services, catering for around 25 births each week, and non-emergency elective surgery

Lquidators Declan Taite and Anne O’Dwyer of RSM Farrell Grant Sparks have taken court mandated responsibility for the operation of the hospital and will plan and manage a full wind down.

The hospitals 250 fulltime and 78 part-time staff have been advised to report for duty as rostered over the coming days and liquidators will discuss details of the wind down and how it impacts on them. RTÉ is reporting that around 300 staff are set to lose their jobs and there is no indication of what kind of redundancy terms will apply.

Significant losses

NAMA acquired  the hospital’s loans in 201o and had been working to put arrangements in place to enable it to operate on a viable basis. However, NAMA said today the hospital has been incurring significant losses since 2010 and it had not been possible to come to an arrangement.

Though the debtor tried to sell the hospital over the course of 2013 and early this year, NAMA said “it has become clear that a sale at an acceptable price was not possible”. In December, the Department of Health said that neither it or the HSE planned to enter into discussions about purchasing it.

NAMA decided that it could no longer fund the unsustainable losses at the hospital.

Full cared for

In a statement, the hospital said all current patients and those with obstetrics appointments scheduled over the coming days will be “fully cared for”.

Obstetrics patients who are booked into Mount Carmel for maternity services in the weeks and months ahead will be transferred to alternative maternity hospitals and will be contacted by the hospital to confirm this.

Liquidators will liaise with the hospital’s medical consultants and management about any deposits that may be outstanding to patients.

A helpline which has been established to cater for queries from patients can be reached on 01 408 6966 and emails can be sent to mountcarmel@rsmfgs.ie.

Saddened

Justice Minister Alan Shatter said he was “saddened” to learn of the liquidation application.

He said that the hospital “has provided caring medical and maternity services for many decades with a compassionate and dedicated staff of both doctors and nurses”.

Shatter said he can “understand that this is a difficult time for all associated with the hospital and, in particular, the doctors, nurses, clerical and all other staff whose jobs may be lost”.

He said that he hopes that the engagement of the liquidator “results in a continuation of the hospital under new management and all of the jobs presently at risk having some prospect of being saved”.

Read: 169 jobs on the line as liquidator appointed to Limerick jewellery company>