27.01.15
Construction completed on Scotland’s largest hospital
The keys to Scotland’s largest hospital, the new £842m South Glasgow University Hospital, have officially been handed over from the contractor to the health board today.
The new health campus, which consists of the 1,109-bed South Glasgow University Hospital for adults and 256-bed Royal Hospital for Sick Children, was delivered five weeks ahead of schedule and under budget by Brookfield Multiplex.
NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde (NHS GGC) has officially taken ownership of the site, which was built with Scottish government funding. It includes maternity, paediatric and adult hospitals all integrated onto a single site to offer a ‘gold standard’ in acute hospital provision.
Robert Calderwood, NHS GGC chief executive, said: “I am delighted that our partnership with Brookfield Multiplex has seen the delivery of this world class hospital complex achieved not only ahead of schedule but also under budget.
“This accomplishment is testament to every single individual who has worked on this project since the blueprints were first drawn up.
“As we take delivery of the project and embark on the final phase of readiness for the first patients I wish to acknowledge contribution of the very many people involved.
“From the architects and NHS planners and clinicians to the hundreds of construction workers of all disciplines and the wider business community with whom we have contracted to ensure a lasting community benefit from this project – all deserve recognition for their efforts.”
He added that the design was a move away from the traditional ward-based model. With the exception of critical care, all of the patient areas in the adult hospital are single en-suite rooms and all bedrooms have a full-length floor-to-ceiling window on the outside wall to increase natural daylight. In the children’s hospital 80% of the beds are also single en-suite rooms with accommodation for parents close by.
The site also includes 29 operating theatres, and a landing pad on the hospital roof for rescue helicopters.
Scottish health secretary Shona Robison said: “This is an exciting stage in the development of the new South Glasgow Hospital campus as we get ever closer towards completion of the project and welcoming patients into the facility.
“This development has been Scotland's biggest-ever hospital building project, so bringing this in ahead of time and under budget is a real achievement in itself.
“The Scottish government has invested £842m in this project, which will provide patients with access to services for all ages on a single site - bringing with it increased efficiency, shorter waiting times and better continuity of care.
“This major development will transform healthcare for patients and staff and I am very much looking forward to seeing the hospital campus up-and-running and welcoming patients in the summer."
The new campus replaces the Royal Hospital for Sick Kids at Yorkhill, the Southern General Hospital, Western and Victoria Infirmaries and Mansionhouse Unit.
It will also incorporate a new teaching and learning facility and the Centre for Stratified Medicine and clinical research facilities. When it is fully operational up to 10,000 NHS staff will be based at the campus.
(Image: c. NHS GGC)
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