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.

Peterhead Community Hospital ward to reopen nine months after legionella discovery

Summers Ward was first closed in February this year when the bacteria was discovered in the water supply.

Peterhead Community Hospital.
Peterhead Community Hospital will now operate 12 hours a day instead of 24. Image: Scott Baxter/DC Thomson.

A ward at a community hospital in Peterhead will soon reopen following a nine-month closure due to legionella.

The bacteria was first detected in the hospital’s water supply in February this year, with traces still present at the end of August.

Tests continued to be carried out at the Peterhead facility after upgrades were made to the pipes.

The minor injuries unit was able to reopen earlier this year, but the 17-bed Summers Ward has been shut for about nine months.

Patients had to be relocated to Fraserburgh Hospital, about 17 miles away, during this time.

Banff and Buchan MP David Duguid raised concerns about patients, particularly the elderly and pregnant women, being forced to travel elsewhere to be seen for a number of months.

MP David Duguid outside Peterhead Community Hospital
Banff and Buchan MP David Duguid previously visited Peterhead Community Hospital to see the work that had been done to tackle the legionella outbreak. Image: David Duguid MP.

Now, Aberdeenshire Health and Social Care Partnership (AHSCP) has confirmed the Peterhead ward will reopen on Monday, December 18.

Peterhead ward to reopen following legionella outbreak

In a letter to board members, a spokeswoman said: “Since moving the ward to Fraserburgh in February, we have kept the situation under continual review and now, with the majority of the remedial work to the water system completed and with encouraging water test results, we believe we are in the position to move back.

“Stringent water testing has been taking place on site, and we are confident that both staff and patients can return to Summers Ward with no concerns surrounding the water supply.

“As you can imagine a great deal of preparation work has already taken place and there is still much work to do.

“However, this is very good news for our staff and patients, and we will take each step of the move with deliberation and care to ensure a smooth transition home.”

‘Diligent work’

Blood sample positive with legionella
The legionella bacteria was first discovered in the water supply at Peterhead Community Hospital in February.

Jeff Shaw, north area partnership manager for AHSCP, added he was “delighted” Summers Ward could finally return “home”.

He said: “It has been made possible thanks to the diligent work of a great many individuals, who have pulled together in a bid to make the site as safe as possible for both patients and staff.

“I am sure the news will be welcomed by many, and we now hope to make a gradual return to normal.

“Finally, I would like to express my heartfelt thanks to our colleagues at Fraserburgh Community Hospital, for their ongoing support during the entire process.”

Conversation