Staff pulled out all the stops to reopen Caithness General Hospital’s theatre department on time after a £35,000 refurbishment fell behind schedule.
Work upgrading the Wick hospital’s two anaesthetic rooms, and the replacement of corridor flooring and fire doors within the department, began on July 16 and was expected to take five working days.
However, the refurbishment overran by a day due to a delay with the fittings and fixtures.
Pam Garbe, NHS Highland’s CGH rural general hospital manager, said: “Even though the theatre work was one day behind schedule, our staff worked extremely hard both in and out of hours to enable us to reopen in time for the scheduled surgical list on Tuesday, July 24.”
She said other than the slight delay, and the transfer of a small number of patients to Raigmore for surgery, the closure had minimal impact of the running of the hospital.
She added: “The theatre senior charge nurse, Joanne MacNicol, and I are delighted with the work done to ensure that infection control standards are maintained. It will also improve the environment for patients and staff.”
Caithness General £35,000 theatre revamp reopens on time
