HOMERTON LIFE OCTOBER 2004 - Homerton University Hospital

You may have spotted a lot
of building work onsite
over the past year or so,
with cranes and lorries,
and areas cordoned off for
contractors of various
sorts. Here we speak to
Andrew Panniker, Director
of Environment at the Trust, to reveal what
has been happening, what is being built
and what is coming soon...
buildings
buildings
buildin
Brooksby House
Major changes have happened in Brooksby House this summer with
a £3 million building project. In June, a new Sterile Services
Department was opened, supplying the sterile equipment used in our
operating theatres, wards and departments. This is the first time that
this service has been available onsite, which means we can be sure to
have the right equipment at the right time.
This building project also resulted in changes to the procurement
(supplies) department and distribution centre (stores), which is now
also in purpose built premises on the ground floor of Brooksby
House.
MRI
The MRI scanner - our first - was installed at the beginning of the
year. It was a major event to lift the scanner (effectively a powerful
magnet) over the building and into place in the X-ray department.
You may have seen the large crane brought on site specifically for this
purpose.
Our patients are now benefiting for the new onsite service five days
a week, rather than relying on the previous off-site service we had
used for some years.
Ward upgrades
Patients in the maternity and gynaecology wards, in RNRU and
Graham ward have benefited from new bathrooms and other
improvements as part of an ongoing programme to refurbish our
ward areas.
Gardens and gardeners
This summer we are sure that you will have noticed that the
gardeners have worked really hard on our gardens and courtyards,
and many of you have commented on how lovely they look and what
a difference it makes.
Work is now ongoing in the courtyard areas – the jug and bowl
sculpture in the courtyard on the blue corridor is again working and
the courtyard near cardiology has had a makeover after several
months “in the dark” with building work going on overhead.
Planning ahead, we are considering a landscaping “master plan”,
perhaps even themed gardens for our patients and staff – contemplative,
quiet, sensory, play.
Operating theatres
On the way to the canteen you may have seen (or heard) the building
work going on for the new operating theatre and recovery area. Due
to be completed very soon, this provides us with a fifth theatre, sterile
supplies room, accommodation for the anaesthetics team and a new
recovery area. The whole project is costing around £3 million.
Mammography suite
Our first mammography service is due to be launched later this year
and building work is underway in X-ray 2 to provide a dedicated
mammography service for our patients. This is an exciting
development and welcome addition to our radiology service. The
cost of the project is over £0.25 million.
Lecture theatre and academic centre
This autumn we begin building our long awaited lecture theatre
complex on to the eastern end of the Education Centre; a £2.5 million
programme. The Education Centre opened in 1986 and despite the
major increase of teaching onsite, up until now there has been no
additional classroom space. This will give us a much needed 150 seat
tiered lecture theatre with all the modern audiovisual facilities we
need. In addition the entrance to the Education Centre will move to
the other end of the building and security will be improved. On a
social note, we will also be opening a café-bar for daytime
refreshments and lunches and a meeting place for staff in the
evening. A patio area is also being included for those warm summer
evenings!
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