THE IRISH KIDNEY Association has settled its long running legal row with Beaumont Hospital which, during the Covid pandemic, seized its Renal Support Centre – which is in the hospital grounds – for its own use.

The Association had been forced to treat its critical patients in hotel rooms since the hospital board’s sequestration of its built-for-purpose centre.

The Circuit Court had been told earlier that at the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic, the hospital had sequestered the Kidney Association Centre premises for the use of hospital patients under an agreement which had since been breached by the hospital board.

Judge Roderick Maguire was told in the Circuit Court this week that the legal proceedings against the hospital had been settled. 

The matter has been entered for mention next month when details of the agreement are likely to be publicly.

Elizabeth O’Sullivan, a director of the Kidney Association, had stated in written evidence that the board occupied the renal support centre premises, built by the charity, on Beaumont’s grounds under a lease of 250 years.

She described the building as “the crown jewel” in the association’s resources.

While the association had moved to a local hotel in order to facilitate the hospital board and maintain its own work, it transpired that when they sought to have their premises returned to them, the board reneged on the agreement and remained until the present day as a trespasser – albeit latterly paying the association €2,500 a week rent.

Ms O’Sullivan said the association had been forced to seek summary judgment against the board in a bid to recover possession of its own buildings.

While the board had continued to promise to quit the premises, they were still in possession, leaving the association with no option other than take legal proceedings against the board.

Barrister John O’Regan, who appeared with Dillon Eustace Solicitors for the association, told Judge O’Connor that a “final agreement” had been reached with the board whereby it had undertaken to give up possession of the premises by 31 October last.

Mr O’Brien said the Chief Executive Officer of the board and a director were present in court to support the board’s willingness to vacate the centre by the end of the month.

They were not called to give evidence to the court.

Judge O’Connor adjourned the application for repossession until early November to facilitate the board carrying through its undertaking to quit.

The association had also sought leave to have the renal support centre restored to its original condition.

The Irish Kidney Association’s thirteen bedroom facility had provided free overnight accommodation to kidney patients and their families travelling from country areas for their appointments, clinics, treatment and transplantation.

The handover of the facility to the hospital took effect on 14 March 2020.

Beaumont Hospital is home to the National Kidney Transplant Service in the Republic of Ireland and has the largest renal treatment facility in the country catering for more than 1,000 patients which they manage including hemodialysis, dialysis at home and hundreds of transplant patients.

People came from all corners of the country for their pre and post-transplant hospital care at the centre which the Association had been operating for more than 20 years before it had been sequestrated by the Board of Beaumont.

In 2020, a letter had been sent to Mark Murphy, Chief Executive of the Irish Kidney Association from Valerie Caffrey, Chief Operations Officer at Beaumont Hospital, which stated:

“On behalf of Beaumont Hospital, this is to inform you we are sequestering the IKA facility currently residing on the campus as part of the hospital’s COVID-19 contingency plans.

“As such, your voluntary staff and service users will not be in a position to occupy the facility during this time.

“Arrangements will be made to provide alternative accommodation and subsequent reimbursement to your service users throughout the period.”