GEORGE NEWS - Georgians can look forward to a truly state-of-the-art hospital offering new medical specialties right on their doorstep with the new Mediclinic George that is to open officially sometime in May.
George Herald got a sneak peek on Monday 26 January when Hospital Manager Celesté Louw led a tour of the double-storey facility that offers 26 000m² under roof and boasts a beautiful, modern interior with an imposing double-volume entrance hall. SDK Architects designed the building and the builders are WBHO.
Construction is complete, except for some general snags and minor works to be done in the radiology division. Delivery and installation of equipment started on 19 January and will continue until middle March.
The new hospital is an amalgamation of Mediclinic George and the Mediclinic Geneva and the mammoth task of moving both hospitals will be tackled in phases to enable the continuation of services. “During the transition period, which should take one or two weeks, we will keep an emergency theatre and a theatre for caesarean sections open. Patient safety will be foremost during execution,” said Louw.
Non-clinical areas such as administration will move first. Geneva will be moved before the main hospital as it is a small facility.
The new day hospital has 20 beds, three theatres and a procedure room and will provide services immediately once settled in. Two specialised ambulances will be available 24/7 for ICU patients and emergencies during the move.
The new main hospital has 202 beds (George and Geneva currently have 187 beds), 10 operating theatres and two ICUs with 12 beds in total and each bed in a separate cubicle. There is a third ICU that will initially remain a “white box” until further development is needed. Wards are roomy and have only one-bed and two-bed rooms, and each has its own bathroom. There are two floors with 40 doctors’ rooms. Louw said almost all the doctors from the old building are moving here.
The management station in one of the ICUs.
With the fast growth of the Southern Cape in mind, Mediclinic also made provision for future expansion. This includes plans that have been drawn for potential enlargement of the new building. “The original application for a licence for the beds was done in 2019, but due to George’s significant growth, we anticipate some pressure on beds. The Department of Health is fortunately very supportive in this regard,” said Louw.
The new hospital brings cardiology and cardiothoracic services to George for the first time. Four cardiologists and two cardiothoracic surgeons will work here. “George has a large retired community and there is a great need for these services, but patients have had to travel to Mossel Bay or Cape Town.
"We also see this hospital as a regional facility for the Southern Cape as patients come from all corners of the region. George is furthermore a tourist destination with tourists coming from all over the world and we want to accommodate them too.”
Tariffs will not be affected by the fact that it is a cutting-edge facility.
A general ward room.
The new hospital is expected to stimulate local economic growth. Louw said in Mediclinic’s experience, other development springs up around a new hospital, house prices increase and more jobs are created. “The hospital’s own staff numbers in this case will increase from 400 to about 450. Indirect jobs will be created through outsourced services, including the hospital coffee shop which has been contracted out to Plato, a first for Mediclinic. It will be open to the public.”
The impact of the new hospital is already visible in the development at 1 On York next-door where a medical retail space is currently under construction. It is also expected that more sub-specialties in addition to those already available locally will be added over time due the hospital’s central location in a region of exceptional growth. Its service area stretches over 56 000km².
The hospital is the fulfilment of a vision from about 20 years ago under the management of George Schutte. His successor, Kassie Karstens, navigated the challenging processes of securing suitable land and obtaining the necessary approvals. Louw took over the reins in 2024 and seeing the process through.
The building is complete and almost ready to be occupied.
It is a green building and one of the most technologically advanced in the country. The engineer won a design prize for the water system. All the toilets flush with rainwater and there are three storage dams fed by rain water from the roofs. Gardens are irrigated from the dams. The rain water tank design allows for domestic use and uses like fire-fighting.
“An improved recycling unit will enable us to recycle even more than the 80% of our household waste we currently recycle.”
Other high-tech features include facial recognition for entering the building, sufficient solar panels to be completely off-grid on a sunny day, and a closed water heating system that saves electricity.
A solar battery system will be added in the future. The windows were designed with the climate in mind and there is a bicycle shed to encourage staff to cycle to work because it’s healthy and green.
Mediclinic George and Geneva’s manager, Celesté Louw, in the new hospital’s entrance hall.
The date for the official opening is still to be set, but a list of selected guests is already being compiled. The turning of the soil was on 22 September 2023, so WBHO completed the project in about two years and four months.
Asked about the future use of the old Mediclinic building, Louw said Mediclinic head-office will make a decision in this regard. It belongs to a body corporate of doctors and the Mediclinic, that is the biggest shareholder.
“Our new hospital is a beautiful building, but nothing is as important as the staff and doctors and we are fortunate that George is a desirable area that attracts top quality people. Out of the 52 Mediclinic hospitals in the country, our emergency centre has been scored the highest for service delivery,” said Louw.
*The neuroclinic, also part of Mediclinic, will remain at its current premises in Gloucester Avenue.
An operating theatre.
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