KEEPING THE SHOW ON THE ROAD ENGINEERING OFFICER DANIEL SWEENEY WITH HIS TEAM AND COLLEAGUES IN HSE ESTATES HAVE BEEN WORKING HARD TO KEEP HEALTHCARE FACILITIES SAFE AND OPERATIONAL DURING THE PANDEMIC.
B
ased in Cherry Orchard Hospital
manner that would protect HSE staff and service
in Dublin, Daniel and his team
users was my first priority. This required a
are responsible for providing a
review of how we deliver essential maintenance
range of maintenance and facility needs to over
services at premises providing healthcare”.
300 premises throughout Kildare, Wicklow and
Patient safety is, of course, paramount: “One of
South Dublin: “A typical day begins with
the biggest challenges for us in the early stages
reviewing emails in the office at 8.00am followed
was creating ways of working that adhered to
by linking in with regional maintenance
infection prevention and control guidelines.
managers, technical staff and the admin team.
We had to re-evaluate and risk assess
My role is both site and office based so I travel to
completion of even routine tasks and change the
monitor sites and to meet my team members
way we schedule and manage contracted
Family man
and HSE colleagues”.
services or external suppliers. This was carried
Daniel lives in Naas, Co. Kildare, with his
Daniel manages more than 80 staff, including
out in collaboration with HSE clinicians and
wife Noreen, who he says is incredibly
maintenance managers, tradesmen, skilled
service managers to ensure that any essential
supportive, particularly during times similar
operatives, administration, supplies, technical
works could be carried out with patient care and
to the last few months, and his three
support, and works alongside his HSE Estates
safety front and centre of all tasks”.
daughters. In his spare time, he enjoys
colleagues delivering project, property, and
As the months have gone by, the Estates team is
motor racing, rock music (he plays guitar)
facility management. He is also responsible for
extremely busy reconfiguring space and
and GAA, and is delighted that his three
contracts in relation to planned preventive
managing fit-outs such as the Citywest facility,
daughters each share one of his passions.
maintenance (PPM) and statutory compliance,
all while working with limited resources:
which entails managing a large number of
“The number one priority is continuation of
There has to be clear interaction between the
external contractors and suppliers.
healthcare. The challenge facing our particular
clinical professionals, building occupiers and
department is identifying capacity within, and the
construction professionals in facilities and sites,
Adapting to change
augmenting of, existing facilities to provide an
a greater understanding of the priorities, with
Of course, a lot has changed since the arrival of
environment where healthcare professionals
that knowledge base we now have”.
Covid-19, and Daniel and his team, as frontline
can carry out their work as safely as possible”.
Daniel is full of praise for his maintenance team,
workers, had to adapt: “Ensuring staff could
Nowadays we are living in ‘the new normal’:
who he says have been fantastic throughout:
attend work safely, and carry out tasks in a
“It’s certainly not getting any easier but we’re
“My team and Estates colleagues have been
learning more, we’re adapting more effectively,
putting
SURVEYOR PROFILE
and operationally we’re in a better place because
tradesmen and general operatives continue to
we know what we have to do, and how to do it.
be on call constantly, coming in at all hours to do
Ann-Marie Hardiman Managing Editor, Think Media
Covid-19 has changed the way we deliver our
anything they can to help – they’re a great team
services, possibly forever more. It’s not just
with vast healthcare facility experience, and the
about turning up and getting the work done.
lifeblood of the maintenance department”.
in
relentlessly
long
hours,
SURVEYORS JOURNAL Volume 10, Issue 3, Autumn 2020
our
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