Call for Holyrood to look at problems of Edinburgh's new Sick Kids hospital

A powerful Holyrood committee is being urged to look into what went wrong with Edinburgh’s new children’s hospital, where problems with the ventilation system led to a last-minute cancellation of the opening.

A powerful Holyrood committee is being urged to look into what went wrong with Edinburgh’s new children’s hospital, where problems with the ventilation system led to a last-minute cancellation of the opening.

Lothian MSP and Tory health spokesman Miles Briggs is calling on the Scottish Parliament’s health committee to expand its current inquiry sparked by problems at Glasgow’s Queen Elizabeth Hospital to include the Capital’s new Sick Kids:

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And he hopes committee members could start work during the summer recess by making a site visit to the hospital.

Health Secretary Jeane Freeman ordered NHS Lothian to halt the opening of the new £150 million hospital just hours before the move from the current Sick Kids was due start after learning the ventilation system in the critical care unit was not up to standard. She has demanded extra safety checks on other parts of the building.

Mr Briggs said parliament should have a role in seeking lessons from the situation. “Otherwise it is all kept in a closed loop between the developer, the health board and Jeane Freeman. They might not like it, but tough. That’s where you have real accountability.”

The health committee began an inquiry in February into the safety of healthcare environments in Scotland following the death of two patients at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital after they contracted a bug linked to pigeon droppings. The deaths prompted questions about ventilation and infection control.

Mr Briggs said he would expect the committee to take evidence on the new Sick Kids from NHS Lothian, Ms Freeman and the developers.

In a letter to Holyrood health convener Lewis Macdonald, he said: “Given the problems, delays and concerns regarding the new Sick Kids prior to the handover to the NHS, I believe this is an opportunity for the committee to add value to our current inquiry by being able to have oversight of decision making and construction standards at a new build NHS facility.

“I believe our inquiry presents a real opportunity to improve how NHS Scotland takes forward health standards and rebuilds confidence for the public.”