Belford Hospital
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Belford Hospital | |
|---|---|
| NHS Highland | |
.jpg) Belford Hospital | |
 | |
  Location in Lochaber  Location in Scotland  Location in United Kingdom | |
| Geography | |
| Location | Fort William, Highland, Scotland |
| Coordinates | 56°49′10″N 5°6′14″W / 56.81944°N 5.10389°W |
| Organisation | |
| Care system | NHS Scotland |
| Type | Rural general hospital |
| Affiliated university | University of Aberdeen |
| Services | |
| Emergency department | Yes |
| Beds | 34 |
| Helipad | No |
| History | |
| Opened | 1863 |
| Links | |
| Website | Official Website |
| Lists | Hospitals in Scotland |
Belford Hospital, locally known as The Belford, is a rural general hospital in Fort William, Lochaber, Scotland. It is managed by NHS Highland.
The original hospital, which was financed by a legacy from Andrew Belford and designed by Henry Burrell, opened in 1865.[1] A prefabricated hospital for fever patients was erected in the grounds in 1893 but, after it burnt down in 1900, was replaced by a more permanent structure in 1901.[1] The main facility was extended following a donation by Balfour Beatty in 1928.[1] After the existing facility proved inadequate, a new hospital, which was designed by Joseph Gleave and built by Arnott Macleod, was officially opened by Princess Margaret and the Earl of Snowdon in April 1965.[1]
When the Scottish Executive looked at reorganising rural health care in 2004 there were clear reasons put forward to retain provision of an emergency service at the Belford.[2] Following this there were calls to work more closely with the Lorn and Islands Hospital in Oban.[3] In 2006, following the Kerr report, the Belford was designated a rural general hospital.[4]
At the end of November 2009 the surgical and medical wards were merged to form a Combined Assessment Unit (CAU).[5]