The new Peterborough City Hospital by Victoria Leatham

An artists' impression of how Peterborough Hospital's Acute Ward 2 will look

WHICH building in Peterborough has 800 lavatories, or a corridor 450 metres long?  What is the biggest building project since the Cathedral was built ? The answer is contained in the title of this article. The new Peterborough City Hospital is a massive and complex building which will serve the needs of this growing city and surrounding rural communities for many years to come.
The Stamford and Peterborough Foundation Hospital Trust of which I have the honour to be a public governor, is extremely proud and excited to be able to achieve the launch of such a vast undertaking. The NHS as we all know, is going through a period of uncertainty, but one thing which is definite is that we deserve and will have a stupendous new hospital for local people.
The decision to close Peterborough District Hospital and Edith Cavell Hospital and combine their various specialist departments in one new “Super” hospital was taken some years ago. Construction began in 2007. The Trust is due to take over the keys of the new building during October! The fact that the delivery is ahead of schedule and on budget is no mean feat for those managing the project.
It is a huge building with many innovative and attractive features. There are a number of internal courtyards planted with shrubs and flowers and with brightly coloured sculptures in the space adjacent to the children’s wards. Art has been incorporated in the decoration of some large areas and the high entrance hall is to be hung with brightly coloured banners. Restaurants and cafes are conveniently situated off this main entrance hall,  guides will be available to make sure you find your way to where you need to be.
It is understood that when you are anxious and unwell, surroundings can influence how you feel. A great deal of effort has gone into the management of the “patient journey” from the moment you are admitted, to when you are welcomed onto the ward. Soothing colours are used to guide you from the hall to your particular ward block where you will be treated , these colours are found repeated in stairwells and corridors making it easier for you and visitors to find their way around.
The Maternity and Paediatric centre has its own entrance and there is a specific accident and emergency area for children. This forms part of a dedicated women and children’s unit.
All expectant mothers should attend this new maternity unit from 9.am on November 30th
There is a state- of- the- art Emergency Centre and the hospital contains 18 operating theatres!
The fact that cancer treatment can be managed in Peterborough, rather than patients having to travel to Addenbrookes down the heavily congested A14 road is a huge improvement in patient care. The new Radiotherapy suite will open in April next year.
When I last visited the hospital , which is undergoing final checking, they were delivering enormously powerful scanners which only just fitted down the corridors, the latest technology has been incorporated in the various departments but the small things have not been forgotten, each bed on the wards will now have its own free television!
Also on the wards, great changes in patient care have been incorporated. There are 612 beds in the hospital.  57% of these are in single rooms with their own en suite bathrooms. The other beds are in four bedded bays where the beds face the middle of the room in a cruciate pattern.  Each of these four bedded bays has its own bath or shower room. The days of long queues for the loo are over!
There is a sixteen bed critical care unit for severely ill patients.
An important date for you to remember is on the 3rd of December at 2am, Accident and Emergency will transfer to the new hospital.. Say a prayer for the staff who have to send everything to the new site...and then find it again when they get there! It is the most complicated removal probably ever undertaken in the city and may never be repeated in our lifetimes.
Everyone wants to know about parking! There is a multi storey car park for visitors and patients opposite the hospital but it is recognised that this will not be sufficient for the future. Once Edith Cavell is demolished and the site is cleared up, a much enlarged exterior car park will be available.
All outpatients attending regular clinics will be told when their clinics are moving , most relocations are taking place during November and December. Patients will be alerted to the dates when departments will be in their new locations.