Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

“End of an era” as historic Woolmanhill hospital set to close

Woolmanhill Hospital
Woolmanhill Hospital

An Aberdeen hospital which has been operating for nearly three centuries will close its doors for the final time next week.

Woolmanhill was first opened in 1749, a full 200 years before the formation of the modern NHS and at a time when leeches were still considered an effective form of treatment.

On Monday the last services – audiology and ear, nose and throat clinics – will finally move to the more modern Woodend ahead of ambitious work to redevelop the site.

Four A-listed buildings at Woolmanhill will be turned into a 52-bedroom “boutique” hotel along with around 40 homes under the plans submitted jointly by CAF Properties and NHS Grampian.

Work is expected to begin in June.

The original hospital building on the site was begun in 1740, designed by William Christall.

But Aberdeen’s most famous architectural son Archibald Simpson designed the Simpson Pavilion in 1833.

In 1887, new buildings, designed by W. & J. Smith & Kelly were constructed to the north of the site.

By 1999, health chiefs had confirmed their intention to eventually close the facility.

Dominic Fairlie, chairman of Aberdeen Civic Society, said: “It’s certainly going to be a big change for the city given the length of time that services have been there.

“Although I am glad to hear that the building will be predominately retained.”

Rosemount and Midstocket councillor Bill Cormie said he hoped the plans for the site would mark the “start of a new era” for Woolmanhill.

He said: “It’s the end of an era for the hospital which has served the people of Aberdeen and the north-east for more than 200 years.

“But there are exciting plans coming forward that will retain the building and the much-cherished granite from the city.”

An NHS Grampian spokeswoman said: “A nine-month programme of construction work at Woodend Hospital has transformed two former ward areas into a new and fresh clinical environment.

“There will be new audiology booths, a hearing aid workshop and examination rooms.

“There are currently 85,000 patients registered with ENT and audiology services.”