'Disappointing', 'distressing' and 'worrying' - reaction to the delay in Edinburgh Sick Kids opening

There has been a frustrated reaction to a last-minute delay in the opening of Edinburgh's new Royal Hospital for Sick Children and Young People.

Patients had been due to move to the £150million site at Little France on Tuesday July 9, but it emerged yesterday a problem has been found in its ventilation system.

The Health Secretary has now told NHS Lothian to make a thorough safety check of the facility, postponing the move indefinitely.

NHS Lothian Chief Executive, Tim Davison said: “Patient safety is paramount, and following the handover of the new hospital NHS Lothian has continued to monitor facilities at the new site to ensure all systems are operating to national standards.

“Following advice from an independent advisor, I fully accept the Health Secretary’s decision to reschedule the move to the Royal Hospital for Children and Young People.

"The air environment is extremely important and can help prevent the occurrence and spread of infection in patients who are already vulnerable.

“We are extremely disappointed that we cannot move as planned and I am very sorry for the disappointment this will cause to patients, their families and staff affected by this delay. However, patient safety must always come first."

Reacting to the news, Scottish Conservative Shadow Health Secretary Miles Briggs told Forth News: "This latest delay will be hugely disappointing to NHS staff and also families who'd been looking forward to the opening of a new hospital.

"Serious questions now need to be asked of SNP ministers.

"I recently wrote to NHS Lothian and SNP ministers to ask assurances about the ventilation system, given that we've seen concerns in different hospitals.

"I was given an assurance that we would not see further delay.

"For too long now we've had secrecy over the problems which have seen delay after delay at the Sick Kids."

Scottish Labour's health spokesperson Monica Lennon MSP said: “It’s a major blow that the opening of the new Sick Children’s Hospital in Edinburgh has been cancelled at the last minute due to safety concerns.

"This is deeply distressing for the patients and staff who were due to move in today.

“It is beyond belief that these serious safety failures were not raised well in advance of the opening day.

“These issues follow on from the reported ventilation problems linked to the infection scandal at the flagship Queen Elizabeth University Hospital in Glasgow.

“The Health Secretary Jeane Freeman must get a grip on this latest hospital scandal."

Thomas Waterson, chair of UNISON Scotland's health committee said: “We are shocked that this announcement has come at such a late stage - and frustrated that the Cabinet Secretary for Health has put out a press release before any staff had been informed.

"Obviously patient safety is paramount but if there are health and safety issues then the appropriate action was required long before this late stage. We were supposed to move into the new hospital next week.

"The Scottish Government has spent years planning this move, so to have further delays particularly at this late stage for health and safety is simply unacceptable.

"Staff and patients have put up with a substandard building and facilities for far too long.

"The Scottish Government must show staff respect they deserve and give them details of what is happening going forward. So we can explain this to our patients and provide world class health care.”

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