Doctors hit out at plans to open part of new Edinburgh hospital during coronavirus outbreak

A group of doctors have slammed plans for Edinburgh's new Sick Kids to open a section of its campus during the Covid-19 outbreak.

The Daily Record reports the intensive care consultants wrote that they were “very concerned” about relocating the Department of Clinical Neurosciences on May 11th and urged the move to be delayed.

They said: “In the present climate we simply cannot afford to have our energy directed elsewhere.

“It would be tantamount to opening a war on a second front and as history has recorded this usually ends in disaster.”

A view of the new Edinburgh Sick Kids Hospital.

Labour MSP Monica Lennon said: “Health Secretary Jeane Freeman’s judgement is on the line with intensive care doctors warning that the timing of the May 11th plan is dangerous. She must see sense and drop this proposal.”

Originally expected to be ready in winter 2012, the new Royal Hospital for Children and Young People (RHCYP) suffered a long series of delays. Problems included a protracted land swap deal, partner firms running into financial difficulties, poor weather and a serious flood after a hot water pipe burst overnight.

But the new building next to the Royal Infirmary at Little France was finally due to open last July, replacing the current Sick Kids site at Sciennes.

At the last minute, Freeman stepped in to order a halt to the transfer after final inspections found the ventilation system in critical care did not meet national standards, producing only four air changes per hour instead of ten. She also ordered further checks on the building which uncovered other issues with the ventilation, water, drainage, electrical and fire safety systems.

In September, she announced work totalling £16m needed to be carried out and said the new Sick Kids would open in autumn 2020 with the Department of Clinical Neurosciences (DCN) at the Western General moving to the new site in spring 2020.

The DCN relies on an intensive care unit and treats patients who have suffered strokes, tumours, brain haemorrhages and spinal injuries.

Tim Davison, former chief executive of NHS Lothian, informed staff earlier this year that the DCN would open in May: “The Cabinet Secretary has announced that the move of the Department of Clinical Neurosciences to its new home at Little France is to take place from the week beginning 11 May.”

He added: “The migration of the service will have the additional benefit of removing pressure from the Critical Care facility at the Western General Hospital and freeing up valuable extra bed capacity to cater for patients suffering from the Covid-19 virus.”

However, the date did not sit well with consultants at the Western General.

On April 1st, they wrote to NHS Lothian medical director Tracey Gillies: “Now that the pandemic is beginning to take hold, we need to be completely focussed on the task ahead. To add to that the uncertainty of a service move would be a dangerous distraction at a time of our greatest need.”

The consultants said they had already made “significant changes” to intensive care and anaesthetic rotas at the Western General, as well as increasing the number of nurses:

“To relocate some of them mid pandemic would be highly disruptive and create unnecessary anxiety.”

The consultants went on to warn that such a move would result in a “critical shortage” of medical staff to cover intensive care: “This will be unsafe, and quality of care will suffer as a result.”

The consultants also voiced concerns about removal firms taking equipment from one site to another.

“We cannot see how removals could be safely carried out in a potentially infected hospital environment.”

“We believe that the DCN move should be delayed until the pandemic is over and it can be carried out in a safe, orderly and sensible manner.”

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