Scarborough Hospital's Urgent and Emergency Care Centre on schedule
The NHS Trust which runs it says there has been 'great progress' made
York and Scarborough Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust says work to create the flagship Urgent and Emergency Care Centre (UECC) at Scarborough Hospital has been making great progress, despite the recent cold spell.
The building work officially began on 29th April this year with a ground-breaking ceremony attended by the Trust’s Chief Executive, Simon Morritt, and the local MP, Sir Robert Goodwill. The event marked the official start of building work on the £47million UECC, which the Trust says is the largest scheme ever undertaken by the capital projects team.
The new centre will provide much needed extra space in the department where attendances have increased at a rate of around five percent year on year for over a decade. Patients from minor to complex needs can be looked after in the unit by one team of healthcare professionals working together, who will see more patients as quickly and safely as possible.
Dr Andrew Bennett, Head of Capital Projects and Project Director, said: “The progress of the construction work has been really impressive. Up until the winter freeze arrived, the project had not been interrupted due to the weather at all but unfortunately concrete doesn’t pour in sub-zero temperatures!
“Nevertheless, the building work remains on course to be completed by Christmas next year, which is fantastic news for our Scarborough-based healthcare professionals and all our patients who will be treated in the UECC building’s state-of-the-art facilities for many years to come.”
The centre will have its own dedicated diagnostic zone providing CT scans, general X-ray and ultrasound. The new building will also provide a critical care facility so patients don’t have to be moved to different wards.
In the New Year, the construction work will intensify as work starts on major electrical engineering infrastructure upgrades. New sub-stations and generators will be installed on site to support the new UECC building and the wider hospital. All the construction work is forecast to be completed by the end of 2023 with the relocation of clinical services to follow early in 2024.
Simon Morritt, Chief Executive, said: “It’s very exciting to see how much progress has been made in such a short time. We can already see the concrete floors and the structure of the building taking shape. This £47m investment in the town’s emergency care facilities will almost double the current space. It is extremely good news for our staff and for the community that Scarborough Hospital serves.”
York & Scarborough Hospitals Charity is raising an additional £400,000 through the Urgent and Emergency Care Appeal to support the development.