The north’s flagship hospital’s critical care is to get a £28million overhaul, NHS Highland has announced.
Helth bosses will invest the cash in areas including intensive care and theatres at Raigmore Hospital over the next three years.
The Inverness hospital’s acute medical assessment unit, intensive care unit, surgical high dependency unit, theatre and admissions area will be provided in one new area of the hospital on two floors.
Operating theatres at the hospital will be refurbished and an additional theatre will be added to bring the total number of theatres to 10. Seven of these will be equipped with specialist laminar air flow, ensuring the air within the theatre is at the cleanest possible standard.
A full business case for the reconfiguration of Raigmore Hospital in Inverness has been approved by the Scottish Government after plans were submitted earlier this month.
NHS Highland said that the investment will help to reconfigure the layout to make access to these facilities more direct.
A number of improvement works have already been carried out including the refurbishment of some of the wards and the provision of a new, state-of-the-art endoscopy unit.
The original critical care services building at Raigmore Hospital, which services the population of the Highlands as well as Moray and the Western Isles, was constructed in 1980.
Ron Coggins, clinical director for surgical and anaesthetics division at Raigmore Hospital, said: “This investment will not only greatly improve the facilities but also provides an opportunity to co-locate wards and ensure that first-class healthcare can be delivered in modern facilities for years to come.
“Having critical care services over the two floors will not only allow best use of space and staff but it will also improve patient flow in the hospital and the privacy and dignity of our patients.”
Linda Kirkland, director of operations for NHS Highland’s Inner Moray Firth Operational Unit, said: “This is fantastic news for everyone associated with the hospital and for everyone who uses it now and will be using it in years to come.
“A lot of hard work and long hours have gone into making this idea a reality. This is the biggest investment in the hospital since it was built and will really transform the facility. I’m looking forward to seeing it progress.”
The work, which will be carried out by Graham Construction, will start next month and, while a construction programme is yet to be finalised, completion is expected at the end of 2018.
