Patients and staff have bid a fond farewell to the NHS Louisa Jordan.
Thousands of Lanarkshire outpatients had consultations at the temporary hospital from a range of services including dermatology and plastic surgery. This also included over 5000 orthopaedics appointments.
Ann Peacock (70), from Airdrie, was one the ‘delighted’ patients who was seen at the venue which is more used to hosting concerts and conferences than hospital services.
Ann said: “I was having some issues with my knee so I contacted my GP who referred me to an orthopaedic consultant.
“I was a bit anxious that there would be a lengthy wait because of the coronavirus restrictions. However, I was delighted to be seen within about two or three weeks.”
Ann, who was a keen badminton player when she was younger, had a pin inserted into her knee over 50 years ago at Law Hospital in Lanarkshire.
Having experience some issues last year, Ann had an orthopaedic outpatient consultation in September 2020 at the NHS Louisa Jordan.
Ann said: “The SEC looked totally different from the last time I was there which was for an arts and crafts fair. It was so well organised and everyone was so helpful. The people there were so nice and professional, especially my consultant Mr Howie.”
Since July 2020 the NHS Louisa Jordan has played a crucial role in providing much needed space for the continuation of NHS services during the pandemic.
Laura Hamilton, NHS Lanarkshire Business Support Manager for Trauma and Orthopaedics, said: “The Louisa Jordan has been a fantastic opportunity for our orthopaedic services.
“Due to coronavirus restrictions in hospitals, it was very frustrating and disheartening to not be able to offer patients an appointment or even an indication of when they would be seen.
“The Louisa Jordan changed that for us. Everyone had such a positive attitude towards getting the facility set up for us to use. It gave us a much needed purpose and the chance to see patients who needed a face to face appointment.
“I certainly enjoyed the time I spent out there, seeing my clinical colleagues continuing to provide great service to our patients. I almost enjoyed it as much as the time I attended an Enrique Iglesias concert at the SEC.
“Over 5000 patients later, it gives the team a great sense of pride to know what we have achieved for our patients.”
The NHS Louisa Jordan was kitted out with cubicles for consultations, hospital beds and medical equipment such as x-ray machines and CT scanners.
Mr Alistair Murray, Consultant Orthopaedic Surgeon and NHS Lanarkshire Clinical Director for Orthopaedics, said: “Many countries around the world set up temporary hospitals in case they needed extra capacity.
“It was quite awe inspiring to see thousands of cubicles with beds, all empty, and imagining what it could have been like had it been the worst case scenario and it had to be used in the way it was envisaged. It was something that I will never forget.
“Thankfully, the Louisa Jordan was not required for its original purpose. This meant there was a huge space that was fully kitted out that could be put to some use.
“For safety reasons, we were unable to see the usual number of patients in our existing hospitals and other healthcare settings in Lanarkshire. From my point of view, the Louisa Jordan has been fantastic for seeing patients and having contact with patients who needed to see us.
The NHS Lanarkshire orthopaedic team was very keen to find out what patients thought of the service that was being provided and the feedback was almost universally enthusiastic.
Mr Murray said: “Many patients were relieved to be seen and to speak about their problems. Most of them found the environment acceptable. The team was very positive about the environment too, it was well planned, peaceful and there wasn’t the same pressure as there was on the acute hospitals at the time.
“The hospitality team from the Golden Jubilee National Hospital and the SEC team were fantastic with helping patients. They were brilliant at running it as a huge outpatient clinic and hospital. Many of them said they got a real buzz from helping patients, so hats off to them too.”
Photo: Members of the NHS Lanarkshire trauma and orthopaedic team at the NHS Louisa Jordan in July 2020. The existing Covid-19 guidelines were adhered to.
