New sections of QEHB completed on time

Home
- Media
  - Our news

Browse A-Z

Your views

Your feedback is vital to us as we continue to increase the quality of our services.

Your views

You are here:

Date: 22 May 2012

Time: 17:10

New sections of QEHB completed on time

Story posted/last updated: 23 September 2010

Whole new sections of the landmark Queen Elizabeth Hospital Birmingham were completed on 16 September, paving the way for more patients and staff to move into the building in November.

The exchange of contracts between Consort Healthcare and University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust means the next two months can be devoted to cleaning, equipping and stocking up the new areas.

The documents were signed exactly three months after the £545 million acute hospital admitted its first patients, on 16 June.

In the coming weeks the Trust will continue to work on plans for the physical transfer process of the specialties, wards and departments transferring from the old Queen Elizabeth and Selly Oak hospitals in Move 2, which starts on 16 November. There will also be some internal moves within the new QEHB.

The handover is the latest milestone achieved in the new hospital project which has seen developers Consort Healthcare and Balfour Beatty Construction deliver to contract on or ahead of planned deadlines. Many of the facilities due to be completed on September 16 were handed over ahead of programme and were already benefiting both patients and staff who moved into the new hospital in June.

Trust Chief Executive Julie Moore said: “We have now entered a new era in the history of our hospitals, as we continue to move into the new building.

“Our old buildings have served us well but we have long since outgrown them – both in terms of space and technology. Patients in the new building now have an excellent environment to match the excellent skills of our staff.

“The first transfer of patients, staff and equipment was a huge success and everyone involved deserves tremendous credit; now we continue that process with Move 2 and we must continue to work hard together.”

Consort Healthcare Project Director Keith Breeze said: “In April this year, Consort Healthcare was delighted to successfully deliver the first major phase of the new Queen Elizabeth Hospital Birmingham to the Trust. Although this marked a major milestone in the project, the hard work has continued over the summer and, together with our partners Balfour Beatty, we are proud to hand over the second phase of the new hospital on time. We will now work closely with the Trust to prepare the new areas of the hospital for clinical services commencement in November.

“We are pleased to witness the new hospital already benefiting the communities of Birmingham and we are committed to ensuring that the remaining phases of the hospital are delivered on time and to the highest standards.”

Consort’s three service providers, each of whom has many years’ experience in both the public and private sectors, are also fully operational in the new hospital.

KCom provide a range of ICT services, Q-Park provide car parking and traffic management across the site and Balfour Beatty WorkPlace (BBW) provide hard facilities management, including building maintenance, limited grounds and gardens maintenance and security services.

The areas of the new hospital still to be completed will be handed over in phases up until November 2011 and will accommodate the final outpatient services departments, the last six operating theatres and a number of laboratories yet to transfer from old estate.