The Health Service Executive has initiated the procurement process for a €325M programme to build two elective hospitals and additional wards at facilities across Ireland, with the majority based on modular building processes.

In a new four-year public contract, the works will include the provision of 1,500 new beds nationwide, starting with projects in Cork and Galway, according to the Irish Independent.

Two new elective hospitals are planned for the Dublin area, while additional bed wards will be delivered under the programme in blocks of 50 to 150 beds across 18 hospitals between 2024 and 2025.

“Over time, and in line with the HSE’s Capital Strategy, the expectation is this programme will be delivered increasingly through volumetric construction,” HSE tender documents say.

HSE CEO Bernard Gloster has previously said 75% of the projects under the works programme should be completed using a “standard, repeatable design solution.”

“It is envisaged that building form shall be manufactured off-site and delivered to the proposed site for assembly and final fix,” the health authority said in documents.

The documents also emphasised the need for the new hospitals to be flexible enough to support future phases, including inpatient beds for elective procedures.

The HSE, which has a capital budget of about €1B this year and owns or leases about 4,500 buildings across 2,500 locations, said the programme may also include other hospital facilities such as theatres, staff accommodation and critical care.

Earlier this year, it was revealed that hospitals are drawing up plans to build or buy houses for nurses and other key staff, especially in Dublin, where the HSE was looking at properties close to the hospital where it could build new blocks or retrofit properties to make them appropriate for accommodation.

Minister for Health Stephen Donnelly said the HSE and hospitals would need to take the lead on finding a solution to accommodation shortages, but he said he was open to the possibility of making funding available to house staff.