St. Kevin's Hospital (Irish: Ospidéal Naomh Caoimhín) was a psychiatric hospital in Cork, County Cork, Ireland.

St. Kevin's Hospital
St. Kevin's Hospital
St. Kevin's Hospital is located in Ireland
St. Kevin's Hospital
Shown in Ireland
Geography
LocationCork, County Cork, Ireland
Coordinates51°53′47″N 8°30′32″W / 51.89640°N 8.50875°W / 51.89640; -8.50875
Organisation
Care systemHSE
TypeSpecialist
Services
SpecialityPsychiatric hospital
History
Opened1899
Closed2002

History

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The hospital, which was originally commissioned as an annex to Our Lady's Hospital, was designed by William Henry Hill[1] and opened in 1899.[2] The new annex was a substantial facility in its own right and it initially accommodated 490 patients.[2] It was renamed St. Kevin's Hospital in the mid-20th century.[2]

After the introduction of deinstitutionalisation in the late 1980s the hospital went into a period of decline.[3][4] However electroconvulsive therapy was still used on patients in the late 1990s[5] and in 1999 the Inspector of Mental Hospitals reported that conditions in the hospital were "most unsatisfactory".[5] After services transferred to Mercy University Hospital, St. Kevin's hospital closed in 2002.[6] It subsequently became derelict and was badly damaged in a fire in 2017.[6] In 2021 clearance from An Bord Pleanála allowed the Land Development Agency to move ahead with plans for residential development at the site.[7]

References

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  1. ^ "14-acre site of former St Kevin's Asylum finally put on the market". Irish Examiner. 22 March 2018. Retrieved 28 May 2019.
  2. ^ a b c "History of St Kevin's: A mental health institution that incarcerated innocent people in filthy conditions". Journal.ie. 8 July 2017. Retrieved 28 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. ^ a b "No defence of the dirt at St Kevin's". Irish Times. 24 January 2001. Retrieved 28 May 2019.
  6. ^ a b "Beautiful and spooky: Abandoned asylum now apartments in Co. Cork". Irish Central. 14 June 2018. Retrieved 28 May 2019.
  7. ^ Shanahan, Catherine (22 April 2021). "How Cork's St Kevin's will be transformed into a 'vibrant residential community'". Irish Examiner. Retrieved 2 September 2021.