St Albans City Hospital demolition paves the way for new health facility

A new regional health facility is being built next to the current theatre suite at St Albans City Hospital

An area is being cleared to make way for three new operating theatres and a surgical procedure room at a hospital.

Demolition began on Monday at St Albans City Hospital ahead of a new regional health facility being built, next to the current theatre suite.

Hospital bosses said it means shorter waiting times are on the horizon for patients from Hertfordshire and west Essex.

The new facilities are due to open their doors this winter.

Patients across Hertfordshire and west Essex waiting for non-complex orthopaedic surgery, spinal injections or ear, nose and throat (ENT) procedures will be invited to choose this new facility for care.

Two of the theatres and the procedure room in the new block will be for patients whose care is provided by either East and North Hertfordshire NHS Trust, The Princess Alexandra Hospital NHS Trust or West Hertfordshire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, which have all worked on this project, together with the West Essex Integrated Care Board.

The hub is mostly being funded by NHS England using national funding for tackling waiting lists which built up during the Covid-19 pandemic.

The facility is due to treat more than 4,400 patients a year with about half going home the same day and the others staying for one night.

The trusts have said that as well as a shorter waiting times, there will be an "extremely low risk of cancellations or delays" because the schedules are not affected by emergency surgery.

Project leader Michael Meredith, director of strategy and estates at The Princess Alexandra Hospital NHS Trust, said: "By treating patients sooner, we can improve their experiences and outcomes. This is a real step change in the way we provide care for our communities."

Staff from all three of the hospital trusts will work together to form a combined theatre team, which will be bolstered by new recruits.

Those who need more specialised care will be seen at The Lister in Stevenage, The Princess Alexandra, in Harlow or Watford General, depending on which of these would normally provide their hospital care.