The Facilities World Unites To Fight The Virus

Excel Centre building in London

The Excel centre, in London’s Docklands, which was soon to host the Facilities Show until the spread of the coronavirus was fully realised, will become an emergency hospital with 4,000 beds being set up to treat those suffering. It is hoping the facility, which will be called NHS Nightingale, will be ready within a week and eventually be fully functional with two wards of 2,000 beds each by the first week in April.

Health secretary Matt Hancock confirmed: “We will, next week, open a new hospital – a temporary hospital – the NHS Nightingale Hospital at the Excel centre in London…with the help of the military and with NHS clinicians, we will make sure that we have the capacity that we need.”

Other similar facilities are being organised urgently throughout the country, with both the NEC in Birmingham and the Gmex in Manchester readying themselves to assist with the battle to provide necessary care for those in urgent need.