NHS Nightingale Hospital Birmingham put on 'standby' after no patients admitted
The NHS Nightingale Birmingham has been put on "standby" from today (May 5) after no patients were admitted since it opened three weeks ago.
The pop-up hospital, run by the University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust (UHB), was set up to help hospitals across the region cope with the surge of patients infected by coronavirus.
A UHB spokesman confirmed no patients had been admitted to the hospital, which has 500 fully-equipped beds and its operation had been halted.
The Trust said the hospital, based at the National Exhibition Centre, would be operational again within 72-hours if it does need to use the facility.
The development follows the same standby measure at the Nightingale hospital in London "due to limited demand."
“The Trust is on standby to step up the NHS Nightingale Hospital Birmingham within 72 hours should it be needed to create capacity for Trusts across the Midlands," a Trust spokesman told BirminghamLive.
It had offered 500 fully-equipped beds to support patients with COVID-19, who may no longer need intensive hospital care. It could have also been scaled up quickly to 4,000 beds.
The hospital is not technically "stepping down" the Nightingale as they have not had patients admitted there.
A spokesman said: "It's far better to have and not need than to need and not have in this situation. The peak and capacity is very closely monitored. If we need it back we can get it ready to admit patients within 72 hours with supplies and staffing."
The hospital was operational four days before it was officially declared open by Prince William on April 16.
The new hospital was to be used for general medical COVID-19 patients, leaving existing hospitals with more capacity to treat the most seriously ill, who may need intensive care and ventilation.
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