The Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care, Humza Yousaf, officially opened the new Badenoch and Strathspey Community Hospital today.
The hospital, which opened to patients in September 2021, is one of two new NHS Highland community hospitals in a £40million project.
Professor Boyd Robertson, NHS Highland Chair said: “We are delighted to welcome the Cabinet Secretary to Highland to officially open the new Badenoch and Strathspey Community Hospital.
“The hospital has been serving the local community since September last year and we have had excellent feedback from patients and staff about the facility. The new hospital forms a central part of the redesign of health and social care across Badenoch and Strathspey and underlines our commitment to delivering high-quality services across our area.
“The new hospital will be at the heart of the community in Badenoch and Strathspey for many years to come. I want to thank everyone who has played a part in this process. It has been a project which has been driven by the local community and we have worked closely with them to ensure the hospital will meet their needs.”
Pam Dudek, NHS Highland Chief Executive said: “This is a significant milestone for communities across Badenoch and Strathspey and is a shining example of community engagement and partnership working.
“We are grateful to Balfour Beatty and hub North Scotland and their team of contractors for all their hard work in maintaining construction of the hospital throughout the COVID-19 pandemic to ensure the new facility was ready to open in 2021.”
Humza Yousaf, Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care said: “This hospital is a key example of the type of facility that goes beyond meeting just the healthcare needs of patients but brings together different organisations and services to ensure that people can access the right care within their own community.
“As part of our NHS Recovery Plan, this government is committed to bringing in more of this type of community hub across Scotland and I am thrilled to see the positive impact it has already brought to the local area.”
Paul McGirk, Executive Chairman of Hub North Scotland who are NHS Highland’s development partner, said: “This is a wonderful community facility which is already transforming healthcare services across Badenoch and Strathspey.
“The global pandemic made it a challenging project to deliver but excellent partnership working has resulted in a first-class hospital which will serve the community well for generations to come.”
Mr McGirk added: “The superb quality of this building has already been recognised nationally with it recently winning the Health Care Development of the Year category at the Scottish Property Awards and it is a facility everyone is rightly proud of.”
The new hospital has 24-beds, 12 consulting/treatment rooms, an accident and emergency department and x-ray facilities.
It also provides accommodation for the Aviemore GP practice along with community health and care teams. There are also physiotherapy and occupational therapy services, chemotherapy, a midwife service and a Scottish Ambulance Service base.
Read more about Badenoch and Strathspey health and social care redesign.