Noble’s Hospital celebrates its 20th anniversary today (12 July), marking two decades since the first patient was transferred to the new hospital site in Braddan.
In the twenty years since receiving that first patient, the facility has continued to deliver vital healthcare services to Island residents through eighteen TT festivals, a global pandemic, the creation of Manx Care, new units such as the neonatal, endoscopy and breast units, the opening of the Bridge the Gap pod (for children and young people in hospital) and the development of equipment such as state-of-the-art scanners in the radiology department.
The third Noble’s Hospital was designed and built with user-friendliness and technological excellence as the main priorities, and when it opened, the facility was praised for the patient centred layout, state of the art technology and future-proofed design.
Minister for Health and Social Care, Lawrie Hooper MHK, said:
‘In the twenty years since our hospital opened, we have seen incredible advancements in science and medicine. The world around us is moving forward at a relentless pace, and ensuring that we keep up with improvements is a continual challenge for all services.
‘Noble’s Hospital has certainly moved with the times; introducing new treatment and equipment, modernising and improving training and providing more services on Island. Advancements in digital technologies and our response to the pandemic have also changed the way healthcare is delivered globally.
‘Despite those challenges, patients have always been at the centre of decisions made. Noble’s continues to deliver quality care, and it’s the staff that make that possible. I’d like to thank all of the previous and existing staff that have been part of providing that vital care.’
In 2003 there were 1,700 staff who transferred from the old site in Douglas to Braddan; today Noble’s Hospital employs over 2,600 members of staff, ranging from laundry and porters, to medical and nursing staff.
During the last year the hospital saw over 70,000 outpatient appointments and more than 1,900 inpatient procedures.
Teresa Cope, Manx Care CEO, said:
‘It’s a privilege to work in such a fantastic environment, with such dedicated colleagues – many of whom have worked in Noble’s since it opened 20 years ago – and we’re fortunate to have state-of-the-art equipment in many areas of the hospital.
‘In the two years since Manx Care was established, we’ve celebrated multiple achievements, including the reduction of waiting lists across a number of our clinical specialities, and a number of quality improvements and accreditations including the association for perioperative practice (AfPP) accreditation in our Operating Department, and the Macmillan Quality Environment Mark for our Breast Unit and CT. This is helping us to transform the way our services are delivered, in Noble’s Hospital and across our sites, so that we can continue to build a sustainable infrastructure that will future-proof the health and social care needs of the Island’s population moving forward.’
