The new national children's hospital is to be called Phoenix Children's Health, it has been announced.

The new hospital, which will have 380 inpatient single rooms, all with en-suite facilities and parent accommodation, is due to open on the grounds of St James's Hospital in 2022.

The announcement of the name was made by An Toaiseach, Leo Varadkar, and the Minister for Health, Simon Harris, at a sod turning event for the new paediatric outpatients and urgent care centre at Connolly Hospital in Blanchardstown, Dublin.

The centre at Connolly Hospital, along with a similar centre in Tallaght Hospital, will work with Phoenix Children's Health to deliver improved clinical outcomes for the country's sick children.

The two centres will provide local access to urgent care for children in the greater Dublin area. They will support primary and community care through the provision of general community and paediatric clinics, including multidisciplinary care for children with chronic stable conditions.

As a result, attendance at the Emergency Department in the main hospital, as well as outpatient attendance, will be reduced.

The centres will provide services and environments of the same quality as those delivered in the new children's hospital, with staff rotating between the outpatient and urgent care centres and the main hospital.

The facility at Connolly Hospital is due to open in 2019 and is projected to deal with 25,000 urgent care and 15,000 outpatient attendances every year.

The Tallaght centre is due to open in 2020.

Speaking at the sod turning event at Connolly, the Taoiseach said that the two new centres at Connolly and Tallaght will form ‘an integral part of the new children's hospital'.

He said that he felt a ‘special connection' to Connolly Hospital because he worked there as a doctor in 2004 and 2005.

"I saw first hand that it is the commitment and dedication of the staff which makes Connolly Hospital so special. The team here at Connolly should be commended not just for the healthcare they provide today, but also for their commitment to the future and for coming together to forge a new identity and a new tradition as part of Phoenix Children's Health," Mr Varadkar said.

Meanwhile An Taoiseach and the Health Minister also attended a sod turning event for a major redevelopment of the National Rehabilitation Hospital in Dun Laoghaire.

The new hospital development will see the existing ward accommodation replaced by a new fit for purpose block of 120 single en-suite rooms. It will also include integrated therapy spaces, a new sports hall and a hydrotherapy unit. Links to the existing building will ensure full integration between the new development and the existing hospital on the site.

"This new development will enable staff to deliver optimal quality care and treatment in a facility which affords dignity, respect and privacy to all. It will be a major enhancement to rehabilitation services in the country and will have a direct and significant impact on patient recovery.

"These new facilities will make a real difference to the lives of the children and adults who pass through the doors of the National Rehabilitation Hospital," commented Minister Harris.

The new development is expected to be operational in 2020.