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Did you have your best day ever here?

Mount Carmel private hospital, Churchtown, Dublin 14.

Donal Moloney writes:

Mount Carmel hospital was founded in 1949. In January 2014, due to significant debt, it closed it’s doors and 300 staff were left unemployed. I took a look around the empty corridors, rooms & theatres shortly after it’s closure and captured some poignant images (above). It was an eerie yet moving experience. The doll shot may look scary but it is used in teaching CPR.
Nama were forced to put it on the market at a discount price. Last September the HSE reportedly purchased the building for a bargain €11m. I stood in one theatre alone that probably cost half that.
It still lies idle. Let’s hope they eventually put it to good use and re-employ some of it’s former staff .I’m sure there’s also many Mums & Dads that probably experienced the greatest moments of their lives in this place. As far as I’m aware it’s due to reopen as Mt Carmel Community Hospital but I doubt the theatres will ever be put to any use…

Donal Moloney (Facebook)

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44 thoughts on “Frozen Carmel

  1. ahjayzis

    That’s poor placement of the bed facing the door. It’s an auld swingy thing, your bits will be on show to all and sundry everytime the nurse pops out for a fag.

  2. fluffybiscuits

    Everytime I think of Donal Moloney I think of Harbo and how the hipsters would take up if they were to mix their genetic materials, the ultimate hipster condescending food blog irritating photography hipster…

    1. spud1

      How’s Martin these days anyway?
      Looking forward to unwrapping another Christmas present while being filmed I guess…

  3. Mr. T.

    Now where will the south-side MOMS to be go? OMG! They’ll have to mix it up with the proletariat in the city centre conveyor belts. Eww.

    1. topsy

      When those Mums to be had medical problems they were transferred from Mt Carmel to a public hospital where they got real expert care – in a hospital they didn’t think was good enough for them, but often saved the life of the mum and baby.

      1. Jackdaw

        Yes that happened.
        Once every 1700 deliveries.
        We got tremendous care there and my daughters delivery was far from straight forward.

      2. Andyourpointiswhatexactly

        It’s true. I can’t tell you how many people’s noses curled when I went to the Coombe. I went private there (before it was done up, unfortunately) and although it’s a sh*t-tip of a building, the care was outstanding.
        Having said that, I saw some scummers dealing drugs to patients outside the cafe there. I could see why that mightn’t impress. I’m guessing it was heroin, though I’ve no idea really.

  4. Slightly Bemused

    That’s where I was born. The place the world first heard my utterances.

    Admittedly, I think they were probably more erudite for my age than they are now, but what they hey!

    Nice pictures, thank you for sharing.

    1. scottser

      Shame you couldnt hang on in there another day, you could have had the nation celebrating your birthday..

  5. Neil

    Horribly graded and stylised photographs. They look like they’re being used in a Childline or Barnardos advert. This has no place in documentary photography. I’m surprised they’re not HDR’d to bits.

    1. Snapper

      There are no rules regarding style re documentary photography. Imho, the grade and tones applied to these shots are perfect for the subject matter. Excellent work.

  6. martco

    meh
    Mt Carmel was more a Hotel with some (but limited) medical facilities than a proper delivery hospital
    any serious issues were carted off into Holles St where they maybe should have started from in the first place
    the world hasn’t exactly fallen apart now that it no longer exists

  7. JLK

    Why do people have a real chip on their shoulders about mount Carmel as a private maternity hospital? Pregnancy & birth in thesis are very routine & this hospital could deal with more complications than most people think.
    Many mothers & babies around the country are transferred to other hospitals in Dublin with complications. Many never attend a hospital at all & birth at home with only midwife’s medical expertise.
    It certainly was a proper delivery hospital that was chosen by many. Just seems such nonsense people cry about it. Fees the same/cheaper than private care in public Dublin hospital.

    It also is open as a hse facility, mostly to house residents of D8 nursing homes while they undergo renovation.

  8. Caroline

    The doll shot was a little scary alright, thanks for the explanation, it certainly put my mind at rest. My initial reaction was that midwives were using it to prank each other on their coffee breaks, but I can see now that that was a mistaken impression.

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