Hospital move hailed a great success by bosses
The opening of the new hospital wing was last night hailed a success after a massive operation to transfer 65 in-patients from the old building.
And Eugene Vickers, 74, the first patient to make the move to the new wing, gave it his seal of approval.
Mr Vickers, who is being treated for a stomach complaint, said: “I must admit, the transition between the old part and here was fantastic. It was so quick and so neat.
“The effort they made to make this move a success was great for Bermuda — the staff were wonderful, great people.”
And Mr Vickers said the modern surroundings “helps energise you so that you want to get better.”
“I was the first in my room and the first in bed,” he said. “I feel very comfortable — people hate going into hospital, don’t like being there. But this is like a comfort zone — yes, I’m here, but this is a beautiful place.
“It helps you build your spirit to get better quicker. It’s the atmosphere, not just the people. It’s nice — beautiful.”
Bermuda Hospitals Board CEO Venetta Symonds said a transfer planned with military precision over two years was a major factor in the huge achievement.
“It went very well, very smoothly — it couldn’t have been any better,” she said.
Ms Symonds was speaking after the move took place at midnight on Saturday — with patients and staff transferring overnight to the new block.
“The complete focus was patient safety and the services,” she said.
And she added that — by 4am this morning — it was expected that the first dialysis patients would have been treated in the new wing, with staff coming in specially to assist patients navigate the new surroundings.
Operating rooms were also expected to be up and running today, joined by out-patient diagnostic imaging and oncology also fully on stream.
“I’m relieved — it’s a huge process and there are multiple pieces to it, with technology, phones, computers, you name it. And our team have worked around the clock to address small concerns as well,” Ms Symonds said.
“The patients are settled, the staff have settled into their new environments and already talking about the benefits of having patients in their individual rooms.
“Patients I’ve been able to look in on all seemed to be resting really comfortably in the right environment for them. You can’t help but think they will heal a bit faster in this environment. It’s definitely positive for the patients.”
The new emergency department also opened at midnight on Saturday and saw its first patients.
Ms Symonds said that entry to the emergency room was now off Point Finger Road, rather than off Berry Hill Road for the old department.
“There were a couple of reports of individuals looking for the emergency department. These things are going to happen, but we have additional security at both entrances so we can direct people to the right place,” she said.
Visiting rules for the new acute care wing of King Edward VII Memorial Hospital have been issued.
Bermuda Hospitals Board is asking visitors to check in at the front desk in the main lobby so staff know who is in the building at all times for safety reasons.
People should also check the room number for their loved one or friend to ensure they don’t enter the wrong room.
Only two visitors per patient are allowed at any one time. The board said in a statement: “The people in our inpatient units are not well and there should not be too many visitors in any one room or on any one inpatient unit.
“If there are more than two of you, please use the waiting areas on each floor outside of the ward and rotate visits so only two people are in the room at any one time.”
Visiting hours on the inpatient units are from noon to 8pm every day. Visitors cannot attend before noon and visitor elevators will no longer work after 8.15pm.
In very special circumstances, such as end-of-life situations, special visiting arrangements can be made, with the approval of the clinical manager.
