Elective surgery unit set to open
Construction of St John’s centre to begin in 2020
Construction of a new elective treatment centre at St John’s Hospital is set to begin in early 2020.
Completion is expected by the end of 2021 when the centre will deal with short stay procedures across a number of specialities, including orthopaedics, general surgery, colorectal surgery, urology and gynaecology.
Patients will have an expected length of stay of up to 48 hours.
Angela Constance MSP for Almond Valley wrote to the Cabinet Secretary for Health, Jeane Freeman MSP, to get a progress update about the elective treatment centre promised for St John’s.
The Health Secretary has confirmed that construction of the new elective centre at St John’s Hospital will begin in early 2020.
Comment i n g , A n g e l a Constance MSP said: “I was delighted to get such a positive reply from the Health Secretary.
“NHS Lothian has been given formal approval to proceed with their plans and construction of the new centre will begin early in 2020, with completion due by the end of 2021.
“The availability of these high quality sustainable elective services at St John’s will be a very welcome addition, ensuring that those of us who live in West Lothian will no longer need to travel far for a much wider range of procedures.
“This is nothing more than the people of West Lothian deserve and the additional services will also encourage more medical professionals to want to work in our much-loved, local hospital.”
Jacquie Campbell, chief officer of acute services, NHS Lothian, added: “An Initial Agreement (IA) for a Short Stay Elective Centre (SSEC) has been developed by NHS Lothian on behalf of the East Region.
“This has been approved and we are now working on the next stage, when an outline business case will be completed by May 2019.
“Th i s is an exciting development for St John’s Hospital and the region and is designed to provide surgical treatment for patients undergoing short s t ay procedures, in five different specialties.
“It will also release capacity across the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh, Western General Hospital and St John’s Hospital to address current sustainability and accommodate future growth.”