Jersey could treat some Guernsey patients during Covid-19 pandemic
Jersey’s Chief Minister has revealed that the island's new temporary Nightingale hospital could be used to treat some of Guernsey's patients with coronavirus.
Speaking in a video released by Jersey's government on social media on Wednesday evening (22 April), Senator John Le Fondré said he has been asked if the island will support Guernsey through the temporary Nightingale hospital, if Guernsey needs additional bed capacity when it reaches its peak.
Senator Le Fondré stressed that both islands are working ‘closely’ in their response to the virus and are always happy to work together.
Jersey's government first decided on 2 April that a temporary Nightingale hospital was needed, to help with the island’s response to the pandemic.Work began on the site of the Millbrook Playing Fields on 10 April.
The field hospital is due to open on 4 May, at a cost of £14 million. It is expected to be on site for at least four months, with the capacity to treat 180 patients with Covid-19.
The announcement from Jersey's Chief Minister comes a week after health bosses in Guernsey said there was currently no need for an overflow hospital to be built in the island.
Guernsey's Medical Director, Dr Peter Rabey, said The Princess Elizabeth Hospital could be expanded 'quite significantly' with staff moved from other areas of the hospital to care for patients.