Researcher comments on first single room hospital in England

Dr Jill Maben, Director of the National Nursing Research Unit (NNRU) based at the School, has commented on the opening of the Pembury Hospital in Kent, the first single room hospital of its kind in England.

The hospital, which is part of the Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust, opened its women’s and children’s services and some support services in January, with the remaining services opening in September. The 513-bed Pembury Hospital, near Tunbridge Wells, has 10 wards for adults, in addition to the women’s and children’s services, all with 100% single rooms. It was built under a private finance initiative for around £230m.

The NNRU is researching how the new single-roomed hospital will change the way nurses will have to work, giving a ‘before and after’ perspective on the working lives of staff and the effect on patient experience Dr Maben told Nursing Times the hospital’s business plan was based on the idea that the design would facilitate more time at the patient’s bedside, because all equipment, drugs and facilities are in one place. “It requires nurses to think and work differently - they will go into rooms more often to check patients,” she said. Dr Maben highlighted that the shift form the current accommodation is dramatic with some current wards having large Nightingale rooms and 4-6 bedded bays. Dr Maben said nurses’ main concern was visibility of patients, although the single rooms have been designed to aid visibility.

The NNRU project is funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) via Health and Care Infrastructure Research and Innovation Centre Imperial and runs until 2012. Clarissa Penfold, from the NNRU is the research associate on the project and is now undertaking the field work.

Read the article published in the Nursing Times.