Bristol Nightingale Hospital to close
It will be stood down having never housed a covid patient
The Nightingale Hospital in Bristol will close next month, as coronavirus case numbers continue to drop.
In a post on Twitter the Health Secretary has announced almost all the Nightingale Hospitals across England will shut in April, though the sites in London and Sunderland will remain open as vaccination centres.
Bristol's Nightingale site first opened on Monday 27 April last year at the University of the West of England Frenchay Campus, with bosses claiming it could provide up to 300 intensive care beds for coronavirus cases if the region's permanent hospitals were overwhelmed.
Almost a year later however, it will close its doors having never housed a COVID patient.
"In this pandemic our nation has had to rise to some very significant challenges and one of those challenges has been making sure there's been the NHS capacity we need," Matt Hancock said.
"Our NHS Nightingale Hospitals are monuments to this nation's ability to get things done fast when it really matters.
"Built in just a matter of days, they gave us confidence that the NHS would fulfil its timeless promise always to be there for you, to care for you and your family.
"The Nightingale Hospitals played a critical role and now, thanks to the combined effort of the vaccination programme and everyone's commitment to stick to the rules, there are fewer than 10,000 (COVID) people in hospitals across the UK and that's down from a peak of almost 40,000 only seven weeks ago."
In a statement a spokesperson from the Bristol Nightingale Hospital said it has played an "invaluable role" in supporting non-COVID patients in the region.
At the beginning of December last year the site began hosting out patient appointments from the Bristol Eye Hospital and Bristol Children's Hospital, whilst remaining on standy in case it were needed for COVID patients.
“The NHS has been building resilience across permanent services throughout the pandemic and the time is now right to stand the Nightingale hospital down," the statement reads.
All outpatient treatment will be moved back to the Eye Hospital and Children's Hospital respectively when the site closes on April 1.
Bristol's current infection rate is 55.5 per 100,000 people.