A new military hospital ward for injured soldiers will be built in the West Midlands, the Ministry of Defence announced today.
It will be a designated trauma and orthopaedics ward with single rooms or four-bed bays.
The ward is due to open in Edgbaston in 2010 as part of the new £545 million Birmingham New Hospital and will be part of the University Hospital Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust, which manages the city’s Selly Oak Hospital where the Royal Centre for Defence Medicine (RCDM) is based.
The new hospital will be home to the largest single-floor critical care unit in the world with 100 beds.
The existing Selly Oak ward cares for members of the armed forces injured overseas, particularly those wounded in conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan.
As well as being treated by military staff, soldiers are also looked after by NHS personnel, alongside non-military patients.
The ward at Birmingham New Hospital will work in a similar way, with civilians admitted to the ward when capacity allows, but there will also be facilities exclusively for soldiers and their families.
These will include a quiet room for relatives, a communal space for military patients to gather and a dedicated physiotherapy area.
Announcing the plans, Under Secretary of State for Defence, Derek Twigg, said: “The new hospital will offer outstanding facilities for military patients.
“Working in partnership with University Hospital, we already provide first-class medical treatment and care for our Service patients.
“The military ward in Birmingham’s new hospital further demonstrates our commitment to providing the best possible care for military casualties.”
Julie Moore, Chief Executive, University Hospital Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust, said: “We are very proud of our relationship with the MOD and the progress that has been made in delivering the best in care to all of the 520,000 patients we treat each year – military and civilian.”
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