Health secretary keen to see a ‘state of the art’ replacement hospital
Humza Yousaf said the Scottish Government will work constructively with NHS Shetland on the business case for a new hospital
HEALTH secretary Humza Yousaf says the Scottish Government is committed to working with NHS Shetland on their plans for a replacement Gilbert Bain Hospital.
Speaking to a visit to Shetland on Tuesday, the SNP minister also said the government wants any replacement facility to be “state of the art”.
But Yousaf said there will need to be an “honest upfront conversation” later down the line about finance and the capital funding that is available.
Meanwhile NHS Shetland chairman Gary Robinson said no site has been earmarked yet for any replacement.
But he said the health board has a “good understanding” for what sites are available.
Robinson added: “Before we get to the stage of doing any kind of appraisal of sites we will be putting a call out for anyone else that might have land available.
“Of course that will help to inform the process, and define the cost as well.”
The current hospital has been operating in its current form since the 1960s and there is now little opportunity to keep up with modern standards.
The health board is currently engaged in an investment appraisal regarding a replacement.
Yousaf told Shetland News his commitment was clear – “we support a replacement hospital for all good and very obvious reasons”.
“But there’s a process that has to be gone through – it’s a major capital project and NHS Shetland will take forward the business case for that,” he continued.
“We as a government, when it comes to committing to a capital project, will interrogate that business case, will scrutinise it, and there will be further processes that have to take place. We’re very supportive of NHS Shetland taking forward that business case.”
At this early stage there is no commitment on a timeline, or the cost of a new hospital. Yousaf said the site and design will naturally inform the final cost.
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“We want it to be a really state of the art hospital – like the Balfour in Orkney we want it to meet our net zero ambitions too,” he added. “That’s why the design process is so important.”
When asked if there was any concern over funding a new hospital in the current financial climate, Yousaf said there are “always challenges on our budget”.
He said the Scottish Government has committed £10bn over the course of a decade for capital funding in health, which he described as a “significant amount”.
“At the same time, there’s no getting away from just how challenging the financial constraints are, and they have been for a number of years,” Yousaf said.
“But go back to our manifesto and you’ll see commitments around health capital, and I’m telling you absolutely clearly without any equivocation that we’re committed to working with the health board around their plans for a replacement Gilbert Bain and we’ll work constructively with them.
“But of course we’ll need to have that honest upfront conversation about finance and the capital that’s available. But we’re not at that stage yet.”
Meanwhile Robinson said after the investment appraisal would come an outline business case, before a full case is worked up.
He previously said the health board could be on site in three to four years.
“We continue to enjoy the support of the Scottish Government and our colleagues in NHS Grampian as we take that case forward,” Robinson added.
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