Fewer jobs at new £422m HQ

A HOSPITAL boss admitted this week that a move to a new £422 million building will mean staff cuts.
Speaking during a tour of University College London Hospital’s Euston Road centre – where patients start to move in this weekend – the director of its Heart Hospital, Neil Griffiths, admitted fewer staff would be needed once the transfer was completed.
UCLH bought the Heart Hospital, based in Westmoreland Street, near Harley Street, in 2001 for around £30 million to boost the number of beds for heart patients and to cut waiting lists.
Mr Griffiths told the New Journal: “There will be cuts because we are going to be more efficient here. Because we are essentially merging three hospitals into one we will be running a more efficient service.
“It makes sense that there will be less jobs available in this area.” But he said no workers should fear for their jobs, adding: “Staff will be redeployed.”
Mr Griffiths added: “This is the largest health care centre in Europe. Our 6,000 staff will be working with the cutting edge of technology.”
The private finance initiative (PFI) project is already under fire from members of the hospital’s Foundation Trust, who include ex-patients and residents.
Last week at a meeting of the trust, members voiced concern over staff cuts and branded hospital policy on meals “a step backwards”.
Member Albert Beale said: “Since the hospital became a Foundation Trust it has had to balance its own books – and the best way to do that is to cut the number of staff. It is all very well having lots of fancy new equipment, but we will actually have less staff covering the area than we had before.”
He added: “They are going to bring in meals from outside the hospital and re-heat them on site. I find this unacceptable.”
The hospital has 2,000 rooms, 12 operating theatres and 595 beds, each with a television, telephone and internet access.
The accident and emergency department moves into the new building this weekend. Patients from Middlesex Hospital – along with £26 million worth of new equipment – will begin to transfer to the new building at the end of August.
Theatre manager Androalla Kournameni is looking forward to the switch to the new building. She said: “We won’t have broken-down lifts and equipment or stinking corridors.
“Hopefully, we won’t have problems with cockroaches either.”