Work started this week on the new Jubilee Building at Musgrove Park Hospital in Somerset.
A ground-breaking ceremony was attended by hospital chairman, Rosalinde Wyke, and Steve Tapson, regional director of developer, BAM Construction, marking the start of the build, which is due to be completed at the end of 2013.
The facility replaces wards one to five in the Old Building and will provide 112 single rooms with en-suite facilities; making it one of only a handful of NHS units to boast 100% single-room accommodation.
Wyke said that having single rooms rather than bays would help to prevent infection and ensure the privacy of patients. There is also strong evidence that patients sleep better as they are not disrupted by noise at night, which aids recovery.
She added: "The Jubilee Building will bring many benefits to our patients and is an important step forward in our plans to become a major centre for complex surgical work. I am looking forward to seeing the building grow and develop, it really is an exciting time for the people of Taunton and Somerset."
Steve Tapson, regional director of BAM Construction, added: "This exciting project will not only bring great benefit to the local population in terms of healthcare, but also to the local supply chain which we will use during the construction period."
The existing facilities in the Old Building were developed more than 70 years ago, and it is hoped the new facility will provide a 21st-century environment in which to better manage emergency and complex surgical cases.
