A new operating theatre department has opened at BMI The Blackheath Hospital in London.
The new unit is phase one of a £3.8m investment project that will modernise the hospital’s theatres and upgrade critical care provision.
Work began on the new development in September 2013 to deliver a new theatre department with a six-bed recovery unit, nursing station, and upgrades to the three surgical rooms. The development has also improved the theatre department’s staff areas, including offices, changing rooms, corridors and a rest room.
Behind the scenes the infrastructure and support for the air handling units, which filters air coming into the operating theatres, and the medical gas infrastructure has also been upgraded. Two of the hospital’s specialist orthopaedic theatres, which have air supplied through an ultra-clean ventilation (UCV) system, have also been improved to enhance the care of patients undergoing joint replacement surgery.
At the launch, Peter Harris, executive director at the hospital, said: “BMI The Blackheath Hospital has been a part of the fabric of our local community for over 30 years. In this time we have transformed the provision of care we are able to provide to our patients and this new theatre development means we can continue offering our patients the very highest quality care.”
The theatre development took place in stages behind specially segmented, sealed-off areas allowing theatre staff and consultants to continue the provision of care to their patients. Phase two of the project, which will upgrade the hospital’s high dependency unit (HDU) to a level 3 Intensive Treatment Unit (ITU) and deliver a new interventional radiology department, will begin in the autumn.
Richard Evans, managing director of hospitals at BMI Healthcare, said: “Continual investment is vital to the provision of care we provide to our patients and the communities we support. BMI Healthcare continually invests in new facilities, equipment and, most importantly, our nurses, theatre, clinical and non-clinical teams to ensure we are at the forefront of care in the UK.
“This new investment at BMI The Blackheath Hospital will allow us to develop new services and push forward the level of acute care to the local community and in south east London. I would like to congratulate their entire team who have worked behind the scenes over the past few months getting this ready to unveil to our staff and patients.”
