A flooded and abandoned clinic at Nottingham's Queen's Medical Centre (QMC) exposes the dire state of the hospital's infrastructure. This incident raises concerns about the long-term health and safety of patients and staff as the hospital struggles with outdated facilities and a backlog of repairs.
Inside one of Nottingham's busiest hospitals stands an abandoned clinic where plaster is peeling off the walls, ceilings have caved in and standing water floods the corridor. 'This is what can happen when infrastructure issues are left untreated,' said head of estates Michael Soroka during a visit by the BBC.
Other hospital employees said they were concerned other wards could 'follow the same fate' as plans to rebuild and improve Nottingham's Queen's Medical Centre (QMC) and City Hospital were delayed. The abandoned clinic, which once treated patients with both neurological and physical pain, became unusable due to poor infrastructure, including old pipes leaking in the mechanical room above. The ceiling has completely caved in at the abandoned clinic. 'It is embarrassing to see the state the clinic is in now. Catastrophic leaks caused this and it became impossible to maintain,' said Mr. Soroka. The pipework in the hospital was built in 1976 and most of the sites 'plant rooms' share the same pipework as the former pain clinic. Mr. Sokora added: 'The equipment in our plant rooms is coming towards the end its life.' We are full here at the QMC. Space is a premium, so it's a real shame that this clinic is now unusable.' as the hospital ran out of bed space in its A&E department. The QMC is also experiencing problems on wards that currently treat patients. 'Any issues are patched up quickly to ensure they are safe for patients and staff, but the root problems aren't addressed. ' The team here keeps the hospital running on the face of it, but behind the scenes, behind closed doors, we are struggling.' Improving the pipe works and general maintenance is part of the hospital's rebuilding plan, but Mr. Soroka fears waiting over a decade for improvements is 'too long.' At the trust's City Hospital, two wings of the St Francis building, dating back to the 1900s, are also abandoned. The space was formerly patient wards and more recently became finance offices, but they are now empty. Leaks in the roof and a failure of the steam system meant it became 'uneconomical' to keep repairing the space. A spokesperson for Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust (NUH), which runs QMC and City Hospital, said: 'The building itself can withstand the test of time, and with proper investment could become an excellent space for us to use.' QMC and City Hospital were included in the Conservative government pledge to build 40 new hospitals by 2030. The Nottingham Hospitals Rebuild project, called Tomorrow's NUH was included in the plans and expected to cost around £2bn. The plans for 40 news hospitals by 2030 were a Conservative election promise, he said, adding they were not affordable. Its plans included a new centre for women, children and families, and a bespoke cancer care building. Phil Britt, director of major programmes at NUH, which includes Tomorrow's NUH, said: 'We spent years developing these plans because we want to make great changes to the hospital. 'This clinic is an extreme example of what can happen, and we had to make the difficult choice to close it and put our resources elsewhere. 'There is an increasing likelihood that we'll see more places like this over the next decade if nothing is done.' A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said: 'The New Hospital Programme was on a completely unrealistic timeframe and was unfunded. 'We have now set out a timeline that's both realistic and deliverable, alongside £1bn to address the backlog of critical NHS maintenance and repairs to help ensure hospitals are safe and sustainable.
HEALTHCARE NHS INFRASTRUCTURE HOSPITAL MAINTENANCE REPAIRS QUEEN's MEDICAL CENTRE NOTTINGHAM
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