PATIENTS at Warwick Hospital will have the opportunity of a private room in the new year – at a cost.
South Warwickshire Foundation Trust (SWFT) has spent some £12million developing the site of the former estates building at the Lakin Road hospital.
The development of two wards and a private suite means nearly 50 extra patients can be admitted to the hospital at any one time – taking the total number of beds to more than 400.
The private Beauchamp Suite featuring six rooms marks a new concept for the trust.
It will open in January and will allow patients to book their own bedroom and en-suite bathroom before an operation. The rooms have a flat screen tv, and patients, as well as beings served a la carte meals, are guaranteed a parking space for visitors.
For the privilege they will be charged £125 a night throughout January, rising to £180 a night thereafter.
But although patients who opt for a private room will be guaranteed their own space and privacy, trust chiefs say the healthcare provided will be no different to that received by patients in the rest of the hospital.
The money raised through the rooms will be pumped back into hospital services.
Trust chief executive Glen Burley said: “The Beauchamp Suite offers NHS patients the chance to pre-book an individual en-suite room. We know that going into hospital can be daunting and sometimes the privacy and comfort of your own room may help ease some of this worry.
“While all NHS clinical care will remain the same, patients will benefit from enhanced facilities within their room.
“These rooms will be available in the new year and as all profits generated are re-invested back into our local NHS services it will support local NHS services for the future.”
Hospitals across the country are being forced to find alternative ways to boost income in the face of increasing pressure on budgets. A number of NHS hospitals nationwide already offer private rooms to patients.
