Cornwall Celebrates Groundbreaking of New £15 Million Elective Surgical Hub

Cornwall has taken a significant step towards enhancing its healthcare services with the groundbreaking ceremony for a new elective surgical hub at St Austell Community Hospital. The £15 million state-of-the-art facility, designed to deliver approximately 5,000 day surgery procedures annually, promises to greatly benefit patients across Cornwall by providing closer and more accessible surgical care.

The hub, a modular build by ModuleCo, the healthcare division of BRG Technologies, will feature two operating theatres, four recovery bays, and six pre-op assessment rooms, along with reception and waiting areas. This development is a pivotal moment for healthcare in Cornwall, aiming to reduce waiting times and make surgical procedures more convenient for residents, especially those living in mid, north, or east Cornwall.

Photo caption: Inside another surgical hub built by ModuleCo. Credit: ModuleCo

Steve Williamson, Chief Executive of Royal Cornwall Hospitals NHS Trust, highlighted the importance of the hub in bringing care closer to home and reducing the stress associated with travel for surgery. “Having two extra operating theatres increases our overall capacity, which is crucial as we strive to reduce waiting times for surgeries across the NHS,” Williamson said, emphasising the project’s significance in improving patient care and operational efficiency.

Debbie Richards, Chief Executive of Cornwall Partnership NHS Foundation Trust, also expressed her enthusiasm for the project. She noted that the hub builds on the success of joint working initiatives like the Bodmin Community Diagnostic Centre, enhancing the partnership between Cornwall Partnership NHS Foundation Trust and Royal Cornwall Hospitals NHS Trust, with support from the NHS Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Integrated Care Board. Richards underscored the hub’s role in providing additional capacity to help reduce countywide waiting lists.

Photo caption: Inside another surgical hub built by ModuleCo. Credit: ModuleCo.

The elective surgical hub will be owned by Cornwall Partnership NHS Foundation Trust and operated by clinicians from Royal Cornwall Hospitals NHS Trust, representing a collaborative effort to improve healthcare delivery in the region. The construction is being undertaken by ModuleCo, a company with over two decades of experience in building specialist facilities for the healthcare sector.

The groundbreaking event was attended by key figures, including Eliot Langfield of ModuleCo, Councillor James Mustoe, Debbie Richards, Steve Williamson, Margaret Schwarz, Chair of Cornwall Partnership NHS Foundation Trust, Ken Jones, General Manager of Community 1st Cornwall, and Adam Peters, Project Manager for Cornwall Partnership NHS Foundation Trust. This project marks a significant investment in Cornwall’s healthcare infrastructure, promising to enhance surgical services and patient care across the county.