The opening of a major new treatment centre in the Highlands has been hit with further delays.
The National Treatment Centre Highland (NTC-H) was scheduled to open in Inverness in the autumn – 12 months behind the original date.
But there have been problems with deliveries of plasterboard, steel and roofing materials.
Planning director Deborah Jones told NHS Highland that construction has also been held up with Covid due to staff having to isolate.
When will the centre now open?
Now, it is hoped construction work can be completed by the end of the year.
“We have been in discussion with Balfour Beattie and have concluded those discussions with a confirmed completion date of December 9,” she told a meeting of its board earlier.
“This means our go-live date has been pushed back to the April 3, 2023.”
Ms Jones explained that it would not be possible for the £42 million centre to still open this year because it would take 12 weeks to prepare for the move.
Services will need to be transferred and staff will need to be trained up before the first patients are admitted.
In her update, she said around one-third of the 210 people required to staff the centre have been recruited.
Treatment centre delays: What will the facility offer?
Health bosses say the elective care centre will be a key part of plans to reduce waiting times.
The facility will deliver “the best quality state-of-the-art, innovative ophthalmology and orthopaedic health care to the people of the north of Scotland”.
NTC-H will provide:
- Uncomplicated hip and knee replacement surgery
- Hand, foot, and ankle surgery
- A full range of ophthalmic care including outpatients and surgical treatment
It was initially hoped that the new National Treatment Centre would open in December.
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