Construction work on a £545 million state-of-the-art hospital in Birmingham is ahead of schedule, it has been revealed.
University Hospitals Birmingham Trust said most of the building work had been completed and the Queens Elizabeth Hospital is expected to hit all its target dates.
The hospital will be the first in the city for 70 years when the initial phase opens in 2010, before it is completely finished in 2012. The project combines the existing Queen Elizabeth and Selly Oak hospitals and will boast 30 operating theatres when it is fully up and running it.
The new facility is being funded by the Private Finance Initiative (PFI). Previous concerns about cost have not deterred the trust, who said the project was within budget and that costs had been carefully considered.
Professor Allyson Pollock, a PFI expert from the University of Edinburgh, said: “The real question is that now we are going into a major public expenditure downturn how are these payments going to be afforded and the same levels of care provided?”
A trust spokesman said: “We are very comfortable with the costs and the quality of care the hospital will provide for patients make this scheme absolutely worthwhile.”
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