Birmingham City Hospital officially closes as final patient leaves

Dr Kumar was the final patient to leave the hospital and was clapped out by his colleagues
Credit: ITV News Central

After 135 years of treating patients on site on Dudley Road, Birmingham City Hospital officially closed its doors today.

Work began at 5am to move the remaining 110 patients over to the new Midland Metropolitan University Hospital, just 1.7 miles away.

Patients were moved one-by-one by ambulance with the final one leaving just before midday.

That patient was given a special farewell as he is one of the hospital's own; Dr Pankaj Kumar has worked at the site as a Specialist A&E Doctor for 18 years. A recent bout of pneumonia saw him admitted, and so colleagues lined the corridors to wave him off in a moment he clearly found very moving.

Today's moving of patients from City to the new site, ends a month-long phased effort to move all the patients from City Hospital, and nearby Sandwell General, under one roof.

Once patients were out of the hospital, staff gathered on the empty wards to mark an emotional moment, whilst others had the more official job of checking the whole site for any leftover medication or any items with patient details on.

Any piece of equipment that can be used at the new site are being packaged up to take over but move

The empty beds in ICU Credit: ITV News Central

The site has had a hospital on it since 1889, when it was built as an extension to the Birmingham Union Workhouse. It is well known for the main corridor which is a third of a mile long, with nine Nightingale ward blocks radiating from it. It was the design from an architect called W.H.Ward and designed around a configuration recommended by Florence Nightingale.

The history of the building means there are treasures to be spotted all around.

The Birmingham and Midland Eye Centre and the Birmingham Treatment Service mean some medical services will stay on what will become known as the City Health Campus, but the old hospital wings will be knocked down and replaced with housing in the coming months.

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