Irish Cancer Society Launches Daffodil Centre at Beaumont Hospital with Mícheál Ó Muircheartaigh
On Friday, September 23rd , 2011, the Irish Cancer Society officially launched its Daffodil Centre at Beaumont Hospital, Dublin with the help of Mícheál Ó Muircheartaigh and members of the Race the Rás team.
Irish Cancer Society Launches Daffodil Centre at Beaumont Hospital with Mícheál Ó Muircheartaigh
- A powerful resource offering advice, information and support
to people in times of great need -
On Friday, September 23rd , 2011, the Irish Cancer Society officially launched its Daffodil Centre at Beaumont Hospital, Dublin with the help of Mícheál Ó Muircheartaigh and members of the Race the Rás team. The Daffodil Centre, which is run by Irish Cancer Society specialist cancer nurses and trained volunteers, is an information service on-site in the hospital, where people affected by or concerned about cancer can receive information and support.
The Daffodil Centre is the result of a successful partnership between the Irish Cancer Society and Beaumont Hospital. Since it opened in October 2010, the Daffodil Centre has provided advice, support and information to 4,250 enquirers at the point where they need it most – the hospital. Centres are open to all, no referral or appointment is necessary. Those visiting the centre include in-patients, out-patients, partners, family or friends, people with cancer worries or symptoms, those who want to reduce their risk of getting cancer and healthcare professionals.
The construction costs for the Beaumont Daffodil Centre have been kindly donated by Race the Rás – a team of over 50 of Ireland’s top GAA stars who raced An Post’s Rás to fundraise for the Irish Cancer Society. Eamonn Ó Muircheartaigh headed up the team which included Sean Og O hAilpin, Galways’s Ollie Canning and former Dublin midfielder Ciaran Whelan among other hurling and football icons. The team cycled an average of 156km a day for each of the gruelling stages of the An Post Rás tour of Ireland, which took place from 22nd May to 29th May.
John McCormack, CEO Irish Cancer Society said, “We are delighted to bring our cancer information, support and advice service to the point of diagnosis and care – the hospital. This is a service not just for the patient – it is for their families and friends and anyone else who has a concern or question about cancer. Our Centre at Beaumont was the first fully designed and branded centre and it has proven very successful. It is this model that we are rolling out to other hospitals around the country,”
Liam Duffy, CEO Beaumont Hospital, Dublin said, “We welcome the opportunity to work with the Irish Cancer Society to host a Daffodil Centre and we share their vision to transform the patient experience in relation to cancer information and support. The Centre will also support Beaumont Hospital staff, as they can be assured they are directing their patients to an additional layer of care provided by a trusted, professional and expert source.”
The Society plans to roll out Daffodil Centre in five more hospitals across Ireland in 2011. Two further Daffodil Centres are currently under construction in St James’s Hospital and in the Bon Secours Hospital Cork.
