merrion street

Health Minister Dr. James Reilly today opened a new purpose built Colposcopy Unit at the Coombe Women and Infants University Hospital (CWIUH). The improvement of Irish colposcopy services has been a key priority for CervicalCheck – The National Cervical Screening Programme and the unit, which was jointly funded by the CWIUH and the National Cancer Screening Service, will ensure that women with a screen-detected abnormality are provided with optimum care. CervicalCheck celebrated its third birthday in September and since its launch has proved successful with on average 1,000 women availing of a free smear test per day. The CWIUH is one of 15 publicly funded colposcopy services which support the CervicalCheck programme.

Minister Reilly said:

The National Cancer Screening Service has made significant investments in colposcopy services to enable increased capacity and to support the needs of the CervicalCheck programme. The invaluable support of the Coombe Women and Infants University Hospital and all 15 publically funded services has been fundamental in the achievement of national targets. Their commitment ensures that women who require a colposcopy are guaranteed timely access to a standardised level of quality assured care.