Send flowers to Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital, Drogheda

About the hospital in Drogheda

Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital is a public hospital in Drogheda, County Louth, on the Dublin to Belfast corridor and about 40 km north of Dublin. It provides around 340 beds, of which 30 are kept for acute day cases. The hospital is managed by RCSI Hospitals. For many families in Louth, south Meath and the north-east, it is the first hospital they think of, whether for an emergency visit, a planned operation or a birth.

The hospital opened in 1955 as Our Lady of Lourdes International Missionary Training Hospital. It was commissioned on the initiative of Mother Mary Martin of the Medical Missionaries of Mary. Later building work added a new extension, completed in 2010, and new accident and emergency facilities and operating theatres, completed in 2016.

The town around the hospital

Drogheda had 44,135 inhabitants at the 2022 census, making it the largest town in the Republic of Ireland. It lies mostly in County Louth, with its southern fringe in County Meath, and it is the last bridging point on the River Boyne before the river enters the Irish Sea. Because the town straddles the county boundary, an address may say Louth or Meath, and that can confuse a courier. Use the full postal address with the Eircode so the flowers go to the right place.

The UNESCO World Heritage Site of Newgrange is about 8 km west of the town. Drogheda Arts Festival takes place over the May Bank Holiday weekend, with music, performance and street entertainment. If you are planning to visit the patient yourself, check the hospital's parking and the traffic around town on busy weekends.

Rules for flowers in hospital wards

Most Irish hospitals leave the decision about flowers to each ward, so the best advice is to ring the main number, ask for the ward and ask the nurse in charge. Maternity wards, children's wards and general medical wards may take a modest bouquet, whereas critical care units, isolation rooms and some specialist areas often will not. Policies can also change at short notice, for example during outbreaks of illness when visiting is restricted.

When you place the order, write the patient's full name, the ward and, if you know it, the bed or room. Add your name on the card. If the ward turns out not to accept the flowers, staff may ask a relative to collect them, which can be awkward for a visitor who already has a lot to carry.

Sending flowers for a new baby

Lourdes is a busy maternity centre for the area, so many orders are for new mothers. Soft pastel flowers suit a new baby, whether you are sending something to the hospital or to the home. Hospital stays after birth are often short, so it can make more sense to send flowers to the new parents' home a day or two later. Add a message that welcomes the baby by name if the family has chosen one.

Alternatives when flowers are not allowed

If the ward says no, you have several choices. You can send a bouquet to the patient's home to be waiting on their return. You can send a small plant for recovery at home, or a card with a Mass card enclosed, a custom still widely used in Ireland. You can also send flowers to the family who is keeping watch, particularly when a patient is in a long stay.

Planning the card and the delivery date

Keep the card short and warm, with your name and a simple wish for a speedy recovery. Choose a weekday delivery date and avoid the day of an operation or procedure. If the patient is expected to be discharged soon, check with a family member before you order, so the flowers do not arrive after they have gone home.

Choosing flowers

Pick a compact arrangement that fits on a bedside locker. Low-scent blooms such as roses, gerberas, alstroemeria and chrysanthemums are practical, and lilies with heavy pollen are best avoided in a ward. A mixed bouquet in the patient's favourite colour gives a lift to a long day.

Did you know? Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital opened in 1955 on the initiative of Mother Mary Martin of the Medical Missionaries of Mary.