Plans for £840m Southern General campus are revealed

Southern General City is on its way. The blueprint for an £840m hospital campus on the Govan/Linthouse site of the present Southern General had been unveiled by Health Secretary Nicola Sturgeon.
The largest single NHS hospital project yet undertaken in Scotland, it will cost £670m to build with the additional £170m being the kitting out costs for internal roadways, patient transport termini and equipment.
NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde (NHSGGC) have awarded the building contract to Brookfield Europe, a developer with experience in the healthcare field. They judged it was the best value for money though not the lowest bid.
A 14-floor adult hospital with 1109 beds will be created with every patient having their own en-suite. This will help in the fight against hospital infections.
A children’s hospital, with a separate identity and entrance, will be next to the adult hospital. It will have 256 beds over five storeys and will replace the existing Royal Hospital for Sick Children. Children helped design some features which include a covered roof garden and a stage for theatrical productions. There will be a mix of four-bedded and single-bedded rooms because a child’s health benefits from being around other children.
The children’s hospital will be linked to the adult hospital as well as the maternity wing which is being redeveloped at a cost of £28m. Early in 2010 the maternity hospital is expected to be opened.
Said Health Secretary Nicola Sturgeon, who is MSP for the area: ‘This is a major milestone in Scotland’s biggest ever hospital building project. This is good news for patients and the entire community. Every penny of the cost will be met from the public purse and the jobs created by the construction will provide a major boost to the local economy.
‘The designs I’ve seen for the adult and the children’s hospitals will provide world-class facilities and be important weapons in our fight against hospital infections. I look forward to seeing this radical design transforming the Govan skyline.’