Elective care hub set to open at Leeds hospital

By Jo Makosinski | Published: 9-Jan-2023

Construction work completed at Wharfedale Hospital as part of efforts to reduce surgical backlog

Work on a new £1m elective care hub at Wharfedale Hospital in Otley has been completed.

Two new temporary theatres have been installed on site by Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust to tackle the backlog of patients waiting for treatment.

The elective care hubs aim to create COVID-free sites, away from emergency care facilities, providing safe spaces to help manage patients who need elective procedures.

The trust’s first hub has been installed at Wharfedale Hospital to provide additional theatre capacity to care for 15-18 patients a week requiring foot, ankle, and upper limb procedures.

Working for main contractor, BAM Construction, and Watson Batty Architects, Dudleys Consulting Engineers consulted on all structural and civil engineering requirements for the install, including ground foundations, services integration, and firewall construction.

And the process was managed to a fast-tracked timescale, with police escort to deliver the offsite-manufactured Vanguard units which were fully fitted out to surgical theatre requirements.

Andy Walker, managing director at Dudleys, said: “We were pleased to be a part of the team ensuring the rapid turnaround of this important installation. 

“There were a number of challenges, including planning procedures, firewall construction to protect the existing hospital, and delivery of the units due to Storm Etna affecting the River Wharfe bridge, but we successfully completed the install with levelling and support blocks in place to allow fit out.”

The new theatres are expected to be ready for use by the end of the year.

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