This is the only private provider we've found in the Republic able to take a paediatric FRAT sample through the full chain: draw, centrifuge and courier handover. Their site notes particular care with patients who have a fear of needles.
FRAT Testing · Logistics Guide · Ireland
There are two places on the island of Ireland that can do this.
The FRAT needs a venous draw, on-site centrifuging and an international courier — most phlebotomy clinics can't manage all three for a child. We checked. In the Republic, one provider can. In Northern Ireland, one more.
If you've ordered the kit and are wondering where to actually take your child — here are both, in full.
Book a Consultation →At a glance
- Republic of Ireland: DBT Blood Tests, Dublin — children aged 3 and over, no referral required, the only confirmed provider in the Republic.
- Northern Ireland: Vitalis Health, Belfast — 10+ direct booking, or 5–10 via a GP appointment first.
- The draw must happen Monday or Tuesday — the sample can't sit in transit over a weekend.
- Ask about numbing cream when booking — it needs 20–30 minutes to work.
- Allow up to 75 days for results once the lab receives the sample.
- This page is the logistics, not an order form. The FRAT itself is only arranged as part of a consultation, not a standalone email request.
Republic of Ireland
DBT Blood Tests, Dublin — the Republic's provider.
DBT Blood Tests
Confirmed directly, 30 July 2026
- Blood draws for children aged 3 and over
- No referral required
- Parent attends with the practitioner-supplied kit
- They centrifuge and process the sample on site
- The parent takes the packaged sample and drops it at a courier point
What you'll need to do: email DBT to book (they don't take phone calls), bring the sealed kit with its paperwork, and once the sample is drawn and spun, drop the packaged sample at a courier point the same day — Dublin has multiple DHL ServicePoints, so this can usually be done within the hour. Book Monday or Tuesday, and keep the kit's ice pack in use during transit.
Cost for a paediatric draw with centrifuging hasn't been confirmed yet — ask when booking.
Northern Ireland
Vitalis Health, Belfast — also an option for the Republic's border counties.
Vitalis serves Northern Ireland directly, and is a practical fallback for families in the Republic's border counties or the north west, where Belfast may be closer than Dublin.
Vitalis Health
Confirmed directly — full chain
- Age 10+: no GP appointment needed, book directly — approx. £85
- Age 5–10: GP appointment required first (approx. £125), then the doctor performs the draw — approx. £210 total
- Will freeze the separated sample and release it to a booked DHL collection
Travel note: Belfast is within roughly two hours' drive of most of the northern half of the island — Dublin, Drogheda, Dundalk, Derry, Armagh, Donegal. It's a substantial journey from Cork, Limerick or Galway, so families from the south west should plan an overnight stay given the Monday/Tuesday requirement and morning appointment times.
Before you book
Not sure the FRAT is the right next step for your child yet?
What actually happens
From kit to result.
1
The kit is ordered and sent out. The clinic arranges this through the UK/Ireland distributor.
2
You book the blood draw — DBT by email, Vitalis by phone — for a Monday or Tuesday. Ask about numbing cream at the same time.
3
The blood is drawn and spun on site into serum, using the kit you bring.
4
The sample goes to the laboratory. At DBT, you drop the packaged sample at a courier point the same day. At Vitalis, the clinic books a DHL collection.
5
Results return in up to 75 days. They're reviewed with you alongside your child's wider history.
Practical details that catch people out
- Draw day must be Monday or Tuesday — labs don't accept weekend deliveries and serum is only stable 3 days refrigerated / 5 days frozen.
- DBT takes email bookings only — no phone calls.
- Numbing cream needs 20–30 minutes to work, so request it at booking, not on arrival.
- If dropping the sample yourself, get the courier location and paperwork before the appointment, not after — and keep the receipt.
How we work
Working within scope, clearly.
Paul Foley is a registered nutritional therapist and functional medicine practitioner. He orders and interprets the FRAT alongside your child's medical team — not instead of it. This page is practical research to remove a known logistical barrier; it is not a clinical recommendation of either provider's general standard of care.
Details here were confirmed directly with both providers, but availability, pricing and appointment policies can change — always confirm directly before booking.
Nutritional therapy does not diagnose, treat or cure medical conditions. Every child's situation is different, and this page does not predict an outcome for any individual child.
Registered with BANT · CNHC
Common questions
FRAT blood draws in Ireland — the questions parents ask.
Not that we've been able to confirm. DBT Blood Tests in Dublin (Blackrock and Clonee) is currently the only private provider we've found in the Republic able to take a paediatric FRAT sample through the whole chain — draw, centrifuge and courier handover.
Belfast is a substantial drive from the south west — plan an overnight stay given the Monday-or-Tuesday requirement and morning appointment times. For most families in the southern half of the country, Dublin remains the more practical option even with travel.
No — DBT Blood Tests only take bookings by email, not by phone. They're open Monday to Saturday, appointment only.
Children aged 10 and over can be booked directly. For children aged 5 to 10, a GP appointment is required first, and the doctor performs the draw — which adds a consultation fee on top.
DBT's cost for a paediatric draw with centrifuging hasn't been confirmed yet — ask when booking. Vitalis in Belfast is approximately £85 for direct booking (age 10+), or roughly £210 including the required GP consultation for ages 5 to 10.
Allow up to 75 days from the laboratory receiving the sample. The laboratory that performs the FRAT is the only one doing so worldwide and carries a backlog — plan for roughly ten to twelve weeks.
Yes, but only as part of an active consultation — it isn't arranged as a standalone request by email. Ordering the FRAT is one part of the wider clinical picture: your child's history, the rest of the functional workup, and how the result will actually be read once it arrives. This page solves the separate practical problem of finding somewhere to have the blood drawn once the kit has been sent to you.
PFOLEY
Start with an investigation, not a guess
Ready to talk it through?
A consultation is where we decide together whether the FRAT is worth ordering for your child, and read the result properly once it arrives.
Book a Consultation →
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Sources
- Ramaekers VT, Quadros EV. Cerebral folate deficiency syndrome: early diagnosis, intervention and treatment strategies. Nutrients, 2022. DOI: 10.3390/nu14153096
- AONM (Academy of Nutritional Medicine) — FRAT® testing, UK/Ireland distributor. aonm.org/frat-test
- DBT Blood Tests, Dublin. dbt-bloodtest.ie
- Vitalis Health, Belfast — Phlebotomy service. vitalishealth.co.uk
Provider details were confirmed directly with DBT and Vitalis Health in July 2026, and this page was published in September 2026. This is a logistics reference, not medical advice.