15 August 2012
Portakabin Publishes New Guide to Expanding Healthcare Buildings
Portakabin, the UK's leading modular building specialist, has published a new guide to help healthcare providers rapidly expand hospital facilities to reduce patient waiting times and meet more stringent Government targets.
Reducing waiting times is one of the most urgent priorities for NHS trusts. Department of Health figures show that almost 250,000 (9.4 per cent) of the 2.6m people on hospital waiting lists do not get treated within the 18 weeks guaranteed by the NHS constitution.
Two barriers to reducing waiting times are lack of bed spaces and pandemics such as winter flu viruses, which can cause sudden increases in unplanned admissions.
The new Portakabin report, which can be downloaded from www.portanews.co.uk/reports, provides a useful 10-step guide to expanding ward accommodation to rapidly increase capacity whilst maintaining the highest healthcare standards.
It looks at:
- The cost benefit analysis of hiring a building - to assess the financial implications of a new facility so healthcare providers can calculate how long it would take for the building to pay for itself under the NHS tariff system
- Identifying requirements
- How to find a site
- How to select a modular building supplier
- Configuring the building - a standard or bespoke solution?
- Finalising the specification
- How to manage the building installation phase.
Modular construction is a fast and cost-effective way for healthcare providers to expand ward and consulting facilities, particularly on constrained hospital sites. Complete, fully-fitted buildings can be delivered in a fraction of the time of a site-based construction solution. Critically, buildings can be installed with minimal disruption to patient care and modular construction is a much safer approach as fitting out is also carried out off site.
The advantage of a hire solution means that a building can be reconfigured or relocated as local needs and priorities change and as demand for hospital services evolves.
Interim wards can help reduce waiting times during peak periods, such as during the winter months, and can generate revenue to recover the cost of hiring the building, while a healthcare provider decides whether or not to invest in a permanent facility.
To download a copy of the new report, visit www.portanews.co.uk/reports.
Editor's Notes
1. Portakabin is a registered trademark.
