Government report highlights possible issues with new hospitals

Health and care news - 24 July 2023

A recent report from the National Audit Office highlights various potential problems with the planned work to refurbish St Helier and build a new emergency hospital in Sutton.
Cover of National Audit Office report

Hospital 2.0 - a new design, not yet complete

The new emergency hospital in south Sutton will be built using a standardised design called "Hospital 2.0". Until now, each hospital has been individually designed. Standardisation of different elements such as waiting or treatment rooms should save money. But Hospital 2.0 isn't scheduled for completion until May 2024, so most work can't begin until after that.

Will the hospital be big enough?

Hospital 2.0 designs are based on the assumption that care can be moved out of hospitals and delivered in the community. That's what patients want, and it means patients spend less time in hospital, where they may pick up an infection. But it's not clear if funding will be available to deliver community care. After all, at the moment there is a serious problem with "bed blocking", where patients are well enough to go home but can't because they need care at home which isn't available. So there is the risk that, without enough funding for community care, Hospital 2.0 buildings will be too small.

Will a company build the hospital by 2030?

Building a hospital is a large and complex project, and only four contractors have shown interest in doing the work. They maybe able to pick and choose what work they do and when, which may lead to further delays. The new hospitals programme has already had problems recruiting technical staff, and is having to rely on agencies. The team was scheduled to be reorganised - split between two organisations -  in July. In any case, construction on the Sutton hospitals won't begin until after March 2025.

What Healthwatch Sutton will do

The government is committed to delivering new hospitals by 2030. St Helier managers have made clear the serious problems with the current building. We plan to do the following:

  • To talk to patients, now and into the future, about their experiences at St Helier.
  • To continue to talk to hospital management, so we know if any of the risks the report identifies are actually happening.
  • To continue to provide public information about the issues arising as the project moves forward.