Edinburgh Eye Pavilion temporary closure: Transfer of services to other location gets under way

Watch more of our videos on ShotsTV.com 
and on Freeview 262 or Freely 565
Visit Shots! now
A massive operation is under way to relocate vital services and high-tech equipment from Edinburgh’s Eye Pavilion to alternative sites during the six-month closure of the eye hospital for urgent repair work.

NHS Lothian announced in September that the building - declared not fit for purpose in 2014 - would have to close temporarily for essential work to be carried out on its plumbing system. Two waste pipes have to be replaced and asbestos removed.

Princess Alexandria Eye Pavilion. Picture: Greg MacveanPrincess Alexandria Eye Pavilion. Picture: Greg Macvean
Princess Alexandria Eye Pavilion. Picture: Greg Macvean | Ian Swanson

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

But the Princess Alexandra Eye Pavilion is a busy place, with an average of 152 outpatient clinics a week, using 40 consultation rooms every day. In all, there are 1,400 outpatient appointments every week and more than 130 inpatient slots.

And during the closure, services will be spread across five different sites. Inpatient services and day-case surgery also move to St John’s Hospital, Livingston.

Emergency referrals will now be dealt with at the Lauriston Building just across the road from the Eye Pavilion. And it will also be the temporary new home for many of the Eye Pavilion’s outpatient clinics.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Other outpatient clinics will be located at the Sick Kids Hospital and Department of Clinical Neurosciences, both at Little France; the East Lothian Community Hospital in Haddington; and St John’s Hospital, Livingston.

The migration is expected to take about two weeks to complete, with work due to begin at the Eye Pavilion on November 11.

NHS Lothian deputy chief executive Jim Crombie said the priority has been to ensure the safe continuity of all eye services during the closure.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

He said: “We know that it is less than ideal to have to move these services and we sincerely apologise to patients for the inconvenience and disruption. We hope patients are assured it has been our absolute priority to ensure we can continue to provide them with every single one of these vital services safely during the period of the Eye Pavilion’s temporary closure.”

Michelle Carr, chief officer for acute services, said: “One of the biggest challenges is the physical move of the full range of diagnostic and treatment equipment required to run a modern eye service; from state-of-the-art eye imaging such as retinal OCT scanners, to visual field analysers; from precision eye laser machines, to the complex surgical equipment for eye surgery.

“Even within the clinic room there are examination microscopes, ophthalmoscopes and devices for measuring eye pressure, along with all the lenses and instruments that the healthcare staff require for the many and varied eye conditions that individual patients may present with. All of it has to move with our patients.”

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Jim Crombie added: “This is nothing short of the migration of an entire hospital and has been a massive undertaking to mastermind in just 5 weeks.Our teams have worked hard to identify the appropriate clinical environment for each and every one of these services.

“In order to minimise disruption to patients, we have also ensured every service is co-located with the necessary clinical support services, such as imaging and pharmacy.

“Our volunteers will also be acting as site navigators to assist patients when they arrive for their appointments at an unfamiliar site.”

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Details of clinic moves are listed on the NHS Lothian website. NHS Lothian says patients will be sent their new appointment by text or letter.

Plans for a replacement eye hospital were agreed in 2018, then cancelled before being reinstated, but they are now on hold as part of a two-year Scottish Government freeze on capital spending.

Comment Guidelines

National World encourages reader discussion on our stories. User feedback, insights and back-and-forth exchanges add a rich layer of context to reporting. Please review our Community Guidelines before commenting.