RECENT NEWS

The next Advanced Course in Sterilization Technology and the Qualifying Course for Authorised Person (Sterilizers) Registration Year 2006 is to commence imminently.

Construction company Bluestone is continuing to build its reputation as a leading provider of healthcare buildings by securing a framework to deliver three state-of-the-art health and social care centres in Doncaster. The new facilities, worth around £9 million, will be developed as part of a national framework to improve community healthcare across the UK following the launch of the NHS Local Improvement Finance Trust (LIFT) initiative.

The Skanska Innisfree consortium has been named preferred bidder for the £265 million hospital redevelopment of Kings Mill and Mansfield hospitals for Sherwood Forest Hospitals NHS Trust and Mansfield District Primary Care Trust. Consortium architect, Swanke Hayden Connell, is the design team leader for the 95,000 m2 new building and refurbishment project.

Health Estate Journal was amongst the first to visit the world’s first mobile endoscopy unit, at its unveiling at the Healthcare Estates event in Harrogate in November 2005.

Chelsea and Westminster Healthcare NHS Trust has launched an exciting new recycling initiative across its administration and catering departments. The green overhaul includes the provision of recycling bins across the hospital to encourage staff to recycle all consumer waste including paper, cardboard, plastics, cans and glass.

The successful partnership between the NHS and the independent healthcare sector was clearly demonstrated to Minister for NHS Delivery, Lord Warner, when he officially opened the newly built NHS Treatment Centre at Barlborough near Chesterfield in October 2005.

A group of NHS trusts have achieved potential savings of nearly 30% on their 2005 bill for IT hardware via an on-line auction.

ReSound Health has praised the role of the local community trust in helping it to deliver its first LIFT project in Plymouth over four weeks early.

The JTL/NHS Estates national training programmes – launched in 2005 and featured in Health Estate Journal (June 05 pp40-41) – are off to a winning start with three streams and 40 young people already in place.

Mott MacDonald has been appointed independent tester on the new pharmacy and laboratory services centre at Altnagelvin Hospital by the Altnagelvin Hospital Health and Social Services (H&SS) Trust. The £18 million scheme is being developed under PFI and represents the most complex and significant healthcare PPP/PFI development to date within Northern Ireland.

Pick Everard has been appointed as technical advisor to the South Midlands Local Improvement Finance Trust (LIFT) project. One of the 51 NHS LIFT schemes across England, the South Midlands projects will be in Northampton (£27 million) and Corby (£9.7 million).

A new website has been launched to promote the use of videoconferencing technology across the NHS. The new site provides an essential source of information and best practice and is designed to offer a one-stop-shop for advice and guidance to any NHS organisation investing in video conferencing technology.

The Leonardo Power Quality Initiative (LPQI) has launched an interactive Training Centre offering on-line training modules covering both practical and theoretical aspects of Power Quality for electrical engineers, facilities managers and M&E designers.

Sheffield-based B.Braun Medical has been named preferred bidder for a second, multi-million pound NHS contract to help reduce the risk of infection in operating theatres. The company will be working in a joint venture with eight Hospital Trusts in the Birmingham area to bring the decontamination of surgical instruments up to the latest European standards.

Further building upon its strong reputation in the healthcare sector, the Newcastle office of international project manager and cost consultant Faithful & Gould has recently been awarded a £3 million contract to build a primary healthcare facility in County Durham for one of the county’s busiest practices.

IHEEM recently agreed approval procedures for seminars and courses.

The Engineering Technology Board has announced that the entry fee for Chartered Engineer, Incorporated Engineer and Engineering Technician Registration will be waived for all new registrants during 2006.

RCEA (Sussex) draws members from all over Sussex and consists of retired Chartered or Incorporated Engineers of any discipline who have held senior posts in an engineering environment and who have degree (or equivalent) qualifications.

In your September 2005 edition, you were kind enough to publish something of a cri de coeur, from me which outlined some identified problems (for which we have proven solutions) that were not being addressed despite the massive investment in new healthcare premises.