The Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland (RCSI) and the European Investment Bank signed a major loan agreement for a significant investment towards RCSI’s new ten story academic education building on York Street in Dublin’s city centre at a special event in the College this morning.
The formal loan agreement for €50 million is part of a €106 million investment in the RCSI Dublin campus.
The new academic education building on York Street, which is currently under construction, has provided in excess of 400 construction related jobs over the past two years. It will allow early clinical education to be delivered away from the patient’s bedside, enabling medical students and surgical trainees to learn in a simulated environment.
The 120,000 sq.ft building comprises a state of the art surgical and clinical training suite containing a flexible wet laboratory, a mock operating theatre, clinical training wards, standardised patient rooms and task training rooms.
It also includes a 540 seat auditorium, a library spanning three floors with 500 study spaces, a sports hall and fitness suite. The project commenced in October 2014 and will open to students and staff at the start of the 2017/2018 academic year.
Furthermore, there will also be an upgrade to the main Dublin campus including expanded education, laboratory and research facilities, and enhanced ICT facilities.
RCSI is ranked in the top 250 institutions worldwide and joint 1st place in the Republic of Ireland in the Times Higher Education World University Rankings (2016-2017). It is an international not-for-profit health sciences institution with its headquarters in Dublin. The instituition is focused on education and research to drive improvements in human health worldwide.
Speaking in Dublin about the signing of the formal loan agreement with RCSI, President of the European Investment Bank, Dr Werner Hoyer said, "The European Investment Bank is therefore pleased to support new investment by the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland at sites in and around Dublin as part of our ongoing engagement with Irish universities."
Minister for Health, Simon Harris added, "This project is an excellent example of a cooperative venture which will contribute to the wider economy. Furthermore, it signals confidence in Ireland as a leader in medical and health sciences education and research and will play a vital role in ensuring that we stay in a position of leadership for some time to come."
Source: www.businessworld.ie
