Send flowers to a patient at Bon Secours Hospital, Tralee
Bon Secours Hospital is a private hospital on Strand Street in Tralee, County Kerry. Here is what to know before a bouquet goes to a patient.
About the hospital
Bon Secours Hospital in Tralee is a private hospital on Strand Street and part of Bon Secours Mercy Health, which also runs hospitals in Cork, Dublin, Galway and Limerick. It was established by the Bon Secours Sisters in 1921, so it has served the people of Kerry for more than a century. The hospital provides 130 acute-care beds, and its services include cardiology, general medicine, general surgery, paediatrics, respiratory medicine, diagnostic imaging and intensive care medicine. It has held international hospital accreditation since 2005.
Tralee is the county town of County Kerry and the largest town in the county, with 26,079 residents in the 2022 census. Because the hospital is a private one, many patients arrive for planned surgery or tests, which means you can often find out the date of admission and plan a delivery to match.
Visiting hours and getting there
The hospital's visitor guide gives daily visiting hours of 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm, and says that visiting outside those hours needs approval from the Nurse Manager on the ward. That is a useful guide for timing a bouquet, because a delivery at the front desk during the day is more likely to reach the room before visitors arrive. The same guide notes that Tralee bus station and Tralee Casement railway station are both about a 15-minute walk from the hospital, so relatives from outside Kerry can arrive without a car.
Ring the ward before you order
Every ward has its own rules. Intensive care and some specialist units do not accept flowers, and a patient who is recovering from surgery may be in a room with limited space. Before you order, ring the hospital and ask for the ward, then ask whether a bouquet can be left at the bedside. Give the patient's full name and the ward when you place the order, and put your own name clearly on the card, so that staff can pass it on without delay.
If the ward says no flowers, you have good options. A card with a handwritten message, a small potted plant they can take home, or a bouquet sent to the house once the patient is discharged all say the same thing as fresh stems at the bedside. Many people also order a second, larger bouquet for the day of discharge, because that is when a patient is most likely to be back among family.
Carnations and other choices
Searches from people in Tralee often ask about carnations, and the flower is a sensible choice for a hospital room. Carnations last well without much water, have only a light scent and come in many colours, so a mixed bunch of pink, white and red stems keeps its freshness through a week of recovery. Gerberas, freesias and spray roses are also good, because they are neat and do not drop pollen.
Strong scented lilies are better kept out of a hospital room. Heavy fragrance can bother other patients and visitors, and some people with asthma find a closed ward uncomfortable. Choose a compact arrangement in a low vase if you can, because bedside tables are small, and nurses will move a tall bouquet to make room for equipment.
Tralee in bloom
Flowers are part of the culture of Tralee. The Town Park in the centre has a rose garden with more than 5,000 roses, and the park is the venue for the free Féile na mBláth, the Tralee Garden Festival, held on a midsummer weekend with flower arranging and garden tours. The Rose of Tralee festival, held each August since 1959, takes its name from a 19th-century ballad, and there is a statue of the original Rose in the rose garden.
So a Tralee patient is likely to appreciate a rose, and a bouquet with a few stems of garden roses, a little greenery and the card signed by the whole family is a gentle way to send best wishes in an August or September stay.
Other hospitals in the area
University Hospital Kerry, which opened in 1984, is the main public acute hospital for the county and also serves parts of North Cork and West Limerick. If the patient you want to remember is not at Bon Secours, check which hospital they are in before you order. Both hospitals have their own visiting rules, so the advice above applies to each.
Sending after the hospital stay
Patients who have had surgery often continue to recover at home for several weeks, and a bouquet that arrives then is welcome. Write the home address with the Eircode, add a mobile number for the courier, and choose a delivery date when you know they are likely to be back. A short note such as thinking of you, with your name, is plenty. If the patient lives alone, mention it on the order so that the florist can ring ahead.
Did you know? Tralee's Town Park has a rose garden with over 5,000 roses and hosts the free Tralee Garden Festival, Féile na mBláth, each midsummer.
Frequently asked questions about flowers to Bon Secours Hospital, Tralee
Can I send carnations to a patient in Tralee?
Carnations are a good hospital flower because they last well and have a light scent. Ring the ward first to check that flowers are accepted, and give the patient's full name and the ward.
What are the visiting hours at Bon Secours Hospital, Tralee?
The hospital's visitor guide gives daily visiting from 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm, and says visiting outside those hours needs approval from the Nurse Manager on the ward.
What if the ward does not allow flowers?
Send a card or a small potted plant instead, or wait until the patient is home and deliver a bouquet to the house. Intensive care and some other units do not accept flowers.
Which hospital in Tralee is the public one?
University Hospital Kerry is the main public acute hospital for the county, and Bon Secours Hospital is private. Check the name of the hospital with the family before you place an order.