The Tunbridge Wells Hospital in Pembury, Kent is the first NHS all single room 513 bed District General Hospital in the UK. ThePFI agreementhas a 30 year concession and has a capital build cost of £237 million. The client is Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells (NHS) Trust.
The hospital has a gross internal floor area of 65,000 sq/m and is being delivered in phases; Phase 1a (Womenand Children) was handed over in November 2010 and is operational; Phase 1b (Wards,Accident & Emergencyand the remainder of the hospital) was handed over in May 2011 and is currently being commissioned by the Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells (NHS) Trust for operation in September 2011. Phase 2 (the demolition of the old hospital and formation of roads and additional car parks and helipad) is due for final completion September 2012.
The investor consortium comprises John Laing, Innisfree and Interserve. Laing O'Rourke is the contractor responsible for the design and build of the hospital and Interserve FM is providing hardfacilitiesmanagemet (FM)services through the concession. Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells (NHS) Trust are carrying out the soft FM services themselves.
The hospital design incorporates the concept of two hospitals (Women and Children, and the District General Hospital)in one building.
The new hospital stands on the site of the old Pembury General Hospitalthat dated back to the 1870’s. Construction work on the new hospital commenced in March 2008 and has met all of its programme deadlines to date.
The hospitalhas been designed to take advantage of the difficult natural sloping site by having three floors to the North and six/seven floors to the South.The majority of the single rooms are arranged to take advantage of the magnificent views across the surrounding woodland areas that are listed as areas of outstanding natural beauty and Sites of Special Scientific Interest. The design also incorporates features for patient safety and effective infection control.
Design elements include dedicated theatres, lifts and imaging for trauma work and clinical adjacencies to minimise patient travel in the hospital. Single rooms will reduce the risk of infection and provide easier infection control management. In-patient bedrooms are also designed to minimise falls.
Since opening to the public in January 2011, the hospital has received good reviews from the patients, visitors and staff due to the highstandard of the new building.
