Hospital ‘Quiet Room’ is a special space for parents and families
By Echo Reporter
THE IMPORTANCE of the new Quiet Room at Tallaght Hospital can’t be underestimated.
It is a unique space available to parents and family who need a respite away from the busy hospital environment and is highly valued by the hospital teams who manage the Paediatric Emergency Department.
Located in the Paediatric Emergency Department, the Quiet Room offers a temporary refuge allowing parents and the family a very important space to be with their child in the immediate time after their passing.
The room was designed by Shauna Sweeney, a Senior Architect with local company PM Group. Shauna had previously been involved with a similar project, “The Sanctuary” based in the William Stokes Ward of Tallaght Hospital in 2015.
The original room, previously designed as a standard hospital bedroom was a cold and uninviting space – the opposite to what the function of the room required.
Through this project, the space has been transformed into a welcoming room, with muted colouring and lighting as well as new couches, chairs and soft furnishings.
A butterfly door sign is used as a way of denoting when the room is occupied and was designed by Art Mooney of Artisan Signs along with the staff of the Paediatric Emergency Department and in particular, Sharon Moran, ED Liaison Nurse. Photos and planting help to complete the Quiet Room.
Dr Ciara Martin, Paediatric Clinical Lead and Paediatric ED Consultant at Tallaght Hospital, said, “I welcome the opening of the Quiet Room. This space will be an invaluable support for parents and their children during their child’s emergency care journey, providing them with a space to rest and spend time together at a difficult time.
“We are very grateful to PM Group for their support in making this idea a reality and we recognise their continued support in providing Tallaght Hospital with crucial support in caring for our patients. A key value for the hospital is people caring for people, and this new Paediatric Quiet Room allows us to put this into practice in a very practical way.”
“We wanted the immediate feeling on entering the space to be one of calm, providing an oasis for people who may be feeling distressed,” said Shauna Sweeney, Senior Architect, PM Group.
“This kind of project is a testament to the ongoing relationships we have with Tallaght Hospital and support from Artisan Signs, BAM and Forbo Flooring who all kindly donated their time and expertise”.
“PM Group is delighted to support the community with our second project at Tallaght Hospital. Shauna and the project team have typically gone the extra mile in delivering the project, putting in personal time and effort to make it such as success,” said Cathriona Fitzsimons, Group CSR Co-ordinator, PM Group.
