After months of planning and preparation, the new wing at Kirkcaldy’s Victoria Hospital is a hive of activity as the first wards make the move into the state-of-the-art surroundings.
Staff and patients got a taste of what the future holds as the new accident and emergency department made the switch just the first of many wards that will relocate to the £170 million development between now and February.
It was the latest milestone in a project which will change the face of health services in Fife for decades to come, and a day that NHS Fife has been waiting for since the keys to the new building were handed over at the end of October.
The new wing is part of NHS Fife’s General Hospitals and Maternity Services (GH&MS) Project which also includes the closure of Forth Park Hospital and the move of maternity services to the new wing and the move of A&E services to the new wing with a dedicated minor injuries service at Queen Margaret Hospital.
While the new surroundings might take a bit of getting used for staff and patients, Victoria Hospital coordinator Tina Chapman said it was an exciting time for everyone involved with the hospital as she gave The Courier a look around the wards on Monday.
She said: ”I think it’s absolutely stunning. I think the staff are a bit gobsmacked and when they first came in you could see their jaw kind of dropping as they now have a lot more space than they are used to.
”It’s been all hands to the pump and it certainly feels like that I think the staff were a bit worried initially but the staff are fairly buzzed now they are doing it.”
She added: ”We’ve started moving people from the tower and it will be done probably by a ward a day, but it’s given us a view on how best to get people moved, how many people we need to do the move, that sort of thing.
”It’s all been planned meticulously and we will be a bit dependent on the weather, but so far it’s going well.”
Although A&E was only on the move overnight between Sunday and Monday, it was business as usual for patients and staff who had apparently settled in well when The Courier was given a sneak peek.
Ambulance technician Chris Fyffe (53), pictured, who is based at the Glenrothes station, was one of the first to use the A&E facility and was suitably impressed.
He said: ”Obviously everybody is still finding their feet but it’s very clean and all looks great. It’ll definitely make a difference to us because we work out of Glenrothes and at the moment everybody is getting taken to Queen Margaret Hospital in Dunfermline after 5pm. Having somewhere central like this is going to make a huge difference.”
As well as a huge emphasis on design and layout to improve the flow of the hospital, security is also an important issue, with a number of features to keep patients safe and ensure visitors are closely monitored. It is hoped that these will also help staff with infection control, as waiting areas are not only secure but are equipped with hand-washing facilities.
More parking spaces are available on site, along with disabled parking near the entrance of the new wing, while a travel planning group which includes representatives from NHS Fife, Fife Council, bus companies and the public has developed a plan to ensure public transport links to and from the hospital are improved.
That will see Stagecoach bus services running through the hospital site for the first time from January onwards, while staff, patients and visitors are encouraged to use more sustainable modes of transport.
The next big move is likely to be on or around January 9, when maternity services at Forth Park move to the new wing.