A Birmingham-based architect has completed work on the £3.4m expansion of an internationally renowned haematology centre of excellence, which is set to lead the global fight against all forms of blood cancer.
Pinnegar Hayward Design (PHd) Architects has delivered the transformative expansion of the Centre for Clinical Haematology at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham.
Run by University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust, the expansion will give thousands of patients better access to lifesaving treatments.
The new centre will bring clinical facilities under one roof, with the addition of new research facilities, two clinic rooms – housing new treatment and phlebotomy chairs – as well as increasing infusion capacity by another 24 chairs.
The project was undertaken on a fast track design programme, requiring the close coordination of PHd’s design team to ensure it was delivered on budget and opened on time.
PHd’s team oversaw all works on site to ensure the application of a quality finish to a first class new facility.
Simon Wills is lead architect at PHd Architects, who have worked within the health sector for 20 years.
“The Centre for Clinical Haematology is a very special place that has touched the lives of many people since it opened. It is leading the fight against blood cancers and it is something that Birmingham people should be very proud of,” said Simon.
“In designing the expanded centre we have tried to create a place that is comfortable and less clinical than a typical hospital, for patients undergoing treatments. Many of the patients have weakened immune systems and we have therefore had to make sure that maintaining a sterile environment is a high priority.
“It is a wonderful addition to the hospital and could have a positive impact, globally, on thousands of blood cancer patients and their families.”
The expansion has been possible thanks to funding from the Trust, Greater Birmingham & Solihull Local Enterprise Partnership (GBSLEP) and Cure Leukaemia who made a commitment to raising an additional £1m in 2017 to ensure that the expansion project was fully-funded.
It fulfils a vision to create a centre of excellence for clinical haematology which combines outpatient and day infusion facilities along with improved access to clinical and research teams when available standard treatments have been exhausted.
Professor Charlie Craddock, CBE, director of the centre, said: “The expansion will allow the continued growth of our world-class clinical trials programme, ensuring Birmingham will continue to lead the global fight against all forms of blood cancer.
“It will immediately increase the number of lives saved and will speed the process towards establishing effective treatments for all blood cancers within 25 years.”
Established in 2006, the centre has since treated in excess of 10,000 patients and run more than 60 groundbreaking trials, leveraging more than £30m of free drugs that would otherwise not have been funded by the NHS.
The PHd-delivered expansion project has pledged to create 75 new jobs and support inward investment into Birmingham’s thriving Life Sciences sector.