Southmead Hospital is a large public National Health Service hospital, situated in the Southmead ward in the northern suburbs of Bristol, England. It is part of the North Bristol NHS Trust. A new 800-bed hospital building called the Brunel Building opened in May 2014, to provide services (including Accident and Emergency) transferred from Frenchay Hospital following its closure. The hospital now covers 60 acres (24 ha).
Video Southmead Hospital
History
Early history
The hospital opened in 1902 as a 64 bed workhouse for poor sick people. By 1911 there were 520 beds. During the First World War, the facilities were used as an army hospital. The facilities reverted to a workhouse in the early 1920s and were then greatly extended to accommodate all the sick. In 1924, the Southmead Infirmary was built and was later renamed Southmead Hospital. Notable former medical staff include Geoffrey Tovey, serologist and founder of the UK Transplant Service, which was formed in 1972 and was initially based at the hospital.
Brunel building
In 2005, a major expansion was planned which included moving most services from Frenchay Hospital to the Southmead site, with Frenchay being downgraded to a Community Hospital. Full approval for the project was given by the NHS South West board in January 2009. A new building, which was designed by the Building Design Partnership and built by Carillion at a cost of £430 million, was procured under a Private Finance Initiative contract in 2010. The scheme brought all departments and services together under one roof. Called the Brunel building, after Bristol engineer Isambard Kingdom Brunel, it would have 800 beds, 24 theatres, patient gardens, a public square, a helipad and visitors' multi-storey car park.
The accident and emergency department at Frenchay closed on 19 May 2014 and reopened at Southmead the next day.
In early 2014, the second phase of the hospital redevelopment began with the demolition of the old main building to enable construction work to begin on a Brunel Building extension, together with enlarging the area in front of the hospital. The extension includes a new multi-storey car park for patients and visitors, a cycle centre with storage for 300 bikes, more shops, changing and shower facilities for staff and a community arts space.
Following the 2014 opening of the Brunel building, there was a shortage of parking spaces owing to high demands from visitors, patients, and staff. In 2014 and 2015, patients and visitors parked at the nearby Beaufort Way multi-storey car park. Improvements were made in 2016, including the construction of a 400-space multi-storey car park next to the Brunel building.
Maps Southmead Hospital
Archives
Records relating to hospitals within the Southmead Health Authority are held at Bristol Archives (Ref. 39880).
See also
- Healthcare in Bristol
- Bristol Royal Infirmary
- Bristol Royal Hospital for Children
- List of hospitals in England
References
External links
- North Bristol NHS Trust - Official hospital website
Source of article : Wikipedia
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