The NHS Louisa Jordan hospital at the Scottish Events Campus (SEC) in Glasgow will be completed today.

From tomorrow Monday 20 April 2020, the hospital will be equipped and clinically ready to treat patients during the coronavirus (Covid-19) outbreak, if it is required.

The government says it hopes that the hospital will not be needed, mainly thanks to the public’s continued efforts to stay at home and the other measures that are being taken to increase the number of NHS Scotland beds.

Health Secretary Jeane Freeman said:“I want to offer my sincere gratitude and thanks to the contractors and NHS Scotland staff who have come from across Scotland to work tirelessly to transform the SEC into the NHS Louisa Jordan. You are an inspiration to us all.

“The decision on patients being accepted at the NHS Louisa Jordan will be reviewed on a regular basis. I hope this facility will not be needed as, alongside the public’s continued efforts to stay at home, NHS Scotland has already taken steps to increase the number of NHS beds.

“The exceptional efforts of everyone involved in creating NHS Louisa Jordan during this unprecedented public health emergency will ensure this national facility will be able to treat patients from across Scotland, helping to save lives and protect our NHS.”

Chief Executive of NHS Louisa Jordan Jill Young said: “Building the NHS Louisa Jordan has been an incredible effort. It has been a privilege to lead the project and I want to thank all those who have come from across the country to help us establish this national facility.

“The hospital stands ready to treat patients from across Scotland in a safe, effective and compassionate way, if required.”

Video courtesy of Multivista Platform

The main contractors involved in the construction of NHS Louisa Jordan were Balfour Beatty, Graham, the Kier Group and the Robertson Group. Construction began on Tuesday 31 March 2020 and since then:

  • 23,000 square metres of flooring have been laid
  • more than 1,000 bed bays have been erected
  • more than 8,000 pieces of medical equipment have been ordered
  • 35,000 metres of network cabling have been laid for the nurse call system
  • 135,000 metres of cabling for lighting and power sockets have been laid
  • a new bespoke system to ensure oxygen supply to every bed has been put in place with 1,400 medical gas outlets

The British Army supported the Scottish Government and NHS Scotland by undertaking a feasibility study on how the SEC could be transformed into a hospital. They were not involved in the construction of NHS Louisa Jordan.

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Founding Editor of The Edinburgh Reporter.
Edinburgh-born multimedia journalist and iPhoneographer.