Patients in and around Kendal in Cumbria are to benefit from a new £13.7 million Surgical Hub currently under construction on Level 3 at Westmorland General Hospital (WGH) in Kendal, due for completion in July 2024.
Its creation, and work to build a new £8.6 million Community Diagnostic Centre (CDC) to house the latest scanning technology, takes recent investment at WGH to £22.3 m. University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Foundation Trust (UHMBT) says it is making ‘this huge investment’ with the aim of ‘providing excellent care, treatment, and experience, for the people of Morecambe Bay’. It is also keen to safely reduce stay length, cut waiting times, create an enhanced work environment for patients and colleagues, and make the service more efficient. The Trust said: “This multi-phase project is now approaching its final one.” The Surgical Hub will be for elective care, and will feature:
- A new four-storey extension.
- Two new operating theatres, and an upgrade to three existing theatres.
- A new plant room with new air-handling systems.
- Extension of the existing ‘recovery’ area.
- Siting of all of the surgical wards, theatres, and associated services on the same floor.
- ‘Ultraclean’ canopy technology in all theatres.
- New support, storage, and ancillary spaces
All facilities will be located close proximity to the new CDC for ease of access to specialist scanning and diagnostic technology.
Samantha Pugh, Theatres matron at WGH, said: “We really welcome this investment. Our new Surgical Hub will provide 360 degrees of care – all aspects of surgical care and treatment will be provided in the hub. We have already started transforming WGH into a Surgical Hub, and have had very positive feedback from patients who have really enjoyed being on the surgical ward and having more one-to-one care. Colleagues like the new and modern environment. We went to the Westmorland County Show to engage with the local community, and people were very interested to hear about the new hub.”
Daniel Bakey, associate director of Operations for the Surgery and Critical Care Group at UHMBT, said: “The development of the Kendal Elective Surgical Hub has been many years in the making. As we approach the completion of the current phase, we are extremely excited to have modern, purpose-built theatres fit for the 21st century. One of the many
advantages to the development of the Elective Surgical Hub will be the ability to support more routine, urgent, and cancer surgery. We have already significantly redesigned our theatre timetable, delivered a project to reduce length of stay for hip and knee replacements and will be looking to commence expanding the hub prior to the capital works completing. Our Capital Services Team is doing a fantastic job on this challenging project.”
