Operating room complex planned for Swedish hospital

A temporary operating room complex will be installed at a hospital in Trollhättan, Sweden this summer to ensure patient care is not disrupted while essential works take place in the existing operating department.

Norra Älvsborgs Länssjukhus (NÄL) is an acute hospital with a busy operating department; almost 9,000 planned and acute operations are performed each year. The hospital has taken the decision to install a modular complex to ensure the services it provides to patients are unaffected during the refurbishment period, which is estimated to take several years.

A modular facility provides the ideal interim solution for longer periods, as it can be designed to the hospital’s own specifications and built to a permanent standard. Modules can also be installed much more quickly than a traditionally constructed building and with less disruption and noise at the hospital site.

Intended to be used for general surgery, including orthopedic procedures, the facility at NÄL in Trollhättan will consist of four operating rooms and preparation rooms. The room complex will be connected to washrooms, patient waiting areas and utility areas via a wide corridor, and will also have two separate connections to the main hospital building.

The project is being delivered by Q-bital Healthcare Solutions, a leading supplier of modular operating rooms, hybrid operating rooms, CSSD, diagnostic facilities and other healthcare buildings; in close collaboration with the hospital’s management and facilities teams.

Q-bital are making the modules in a specialist production facility near Amsterdam. Building the modules within a controlled factory environment creates efficiencies and provides quality assurance, as relevant parts can be FAT-tested to ensure it meets all necessary standards before arriving on site.

Aside from clinical considerations, challenges addressed during the build include reinforcing the ceilings and floors to support the weight of the operating room equipment and specialist lighting, and ensuring that the roof can withstand the weight of snow in the winter.

The building will be provided to the hospital fully fitted with operating room lights and pendants, RGB lighting, an imaging system, Metaflex automatic airtight sliding doors and a central control system - all compliant with Swedish standards. The Opragon ventilation system in the operating room will provide ultra-clean air, which is guaranteed a CFU<10.

Diana Cagner, project manager at Västfastigheter, which manages the region’s estate, comments: “Q-bital is very responsive, and have the open-minded and solution-oriented approach that is needed to deliver such a challenging project within a short timescale.”

Arjan de Rijke, Director of Operations at Q-bital, says: “We are very pleased to be part of this project.

“The collaboration between Västfastigheter and the project team is working well and the communication is open and clear, making this a particularly enjoyable assignment to work on. It also reinforces the relationship between Q-bital and its suppliers, following our collaboration on another major project in Malmö last year.”

Ove Almersson, Country Manager for the Nordics at Q-bital, says: “We can be confident that the project will be delivered on time and to the highest standard. The benefits of the collaboration between our companies really show during this type of project. It is also a great opportunity for us to involve our other suppliers. We are looking forward to doing more projects in the Nordics together.”

It is estimated that the new complex will be ready to welcome patients by the end of June, within 8 weeks of being delivered to the hospital site - a short timescale even for a modular facility. Once installed, the rooms are expected to remain in place at NÄL for at least three years.