All scheduled and emergency ophthalmology services have been moved from Mercy University Hospital and Cork University Hospital to the South Infirmary Victoria University Hospital (SIVUH) in the new facility.

For procedures that formerly required travel to Dublin, the unit has laser rooms, a corneal topography room, and an electrophysiology room in addition to a modern operating theatre.

Mr. Martin greeted the new facility's launch and expressed his hope that it will eventually replace the Belfast bus service, which has helped thousands of people in Northern Ireland receive medical procedures, including cataract surgeries.



"I would hope so when the time comes." Naturally, the taxpayers also pay for that," he stated.

"We provided that expressly because when Britain left the EU the cross-border directive no longer applied, but in the interest of patients, we continued to fund a sort of All Ireland approach to accessing services, for cataracts in particular.

"But the numbers are encouraging in terms of this facility, it really is getting a higher through-put and the waiting times are reducing - they need to reduce more - and we need to make sure we fully realise the capacity that the second theatre here provides for us."