Coronavirus: Yorkshire Nightingale to treat non-Covid patients

More than 30,000 hours of labour went into completing the Nightingale hospital in Harrogate

A temporary Nightingale hospital that has not treated any Covid-19 patients is to be used for outpatient radiology appointments.

The 500-bed hospital, based at Harrogate's Convention Centre, was opened by Capt Tom Moore in April.

It was designed to take coronavirus patients if hospitals in Yorkshire and the Humber became overwhelmed.

But it will now be used to support the region in its recovery phase, the NHS said.

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Steve Russell, chief executive of NHS Nightingale Yorkshire and the Humber, said it would offer a combination of diagnostic and surveillance scans to patients with radiology referrals, from 4 June.

"A number of NHS services have been significantly affected by the Covid-19 pandemic as hospitals have had to prioritise the care of patients with the virus," he said.

"The measures taken to introduce social distancing and manage hospital demand have meant that we've not yet needed to use the NHS Nightingale Hospital for its original intended purpose.

"We've therefore taken the decision to utilise the equipment and begin offering CT scans at the facility so that we can get patients seen quickly."

Mr Russell said the hospital had been in hibernation since it was officially opened but has been ready to take patients if it was needed.

He said using the CT scanner would not compromise its state of readiness.

The Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust and the Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust will be the first to use the facility and will provide appointments seven days a week.

Patients who are isolating or shielding will not be seen in Harrogate and those attending will be screened prior to their appointment for any symptoms of Covid-19.

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