WORK is nearing completion following construction delays on the elective surgical centre at Southmead Hospital.
At the time of Bishopston Voice going to print, staff were preparing to move into the building.
The work was due to be completed in spring this year.
Patients will start to be seen at the centre later this summer, initially at outpatient appointments, followed by the first operations a month later.
The newly-formed Bristol NHS Group says that “work is continuing at pace so that the move into the building can begin within weeks and patients can start to benefit from the facility”.
The additional theatre capacity the centre provides will benefit both North Bristol NHS Trust (NBT) and University Hospitals Bristol and Weston NHS Foundation Trust (UHBW) as part of efforts to further reduce waiting times for patients.
The hospital group was launched in April to “formalise closer working for the benefit of local patients, our people, the populations we serve and the public purse,” it says.
The elective surgery centre will create additional capacity so that thousands more planned operations can be carried out across Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire (BNSSG) a year.
The centre has four operating theatres, 12 medirooms and 40 inpatient beds and X-ray facilities.
Bristol NHS Group CEO, Maria Kane, said: “This centre is a fantastic facility that is going to benefit people across Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire and help us carry out more operations sooner.
“As we have seen the centre take shape we have also built our plans to become a Hospital Group and this project demonstrates just what we can achieve by working together to benefit our patients.
“We are looking forward to welcoming the first patients through the doors later this summer.”
David Jarrett, chief delivery officer at NHS Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire Integrated Care Board, said: “It is exciting to be a step closer to opening the elective centre – a facility that is going to play a huge part in our aim to reduce waiting lists and treat people sooner.
“This development reflects our shared and continued commitment to delivering high-quality, sustainable healthcare services that support better outcomes for local people.”