St Helens Hospital – 100th hospital scheme – opens

The 100th hospital to be built under the NHS Plan has been opened in St Helens.

A full range of out-patient clinics, a state-of-the-art diagnostics suite and an enhanced day care surgery unit are included on the site.

Commenting on the opening, secretary of state for health Alan Johnson said it is “fantastic news for patients”, adding they will now benefit from state-of-the-art surroundings and facilities, as well as “first-class” care.

“When you are poorly in hospital the environment you are treated in can play an important role in your recovery, as well as the quality of care you receive,” he added.

In 2000, the plan announced that a total of 100 new hospital schemes would be built by the end of 2010 through a mixture of public capital funded schemes and private finance initiatives in order to replace aging and unsuitable infrastructure.

The Department of Health notes that, to date, 131 hospitals have been constructed or are currently being built as part of the scheme – at a cost of £12 billion.

In other news, the department recently noted a report published by care services minister Phil Hope found nearly 100,000 older people have benefitted from a £60 million scheme to help keep them in their own homes and out of residential and hospital care.