0:00:03 > 0:00:0523 years ago, I was promised
0:00:05 > 0:00:08this building would be up and running within ten years.
0:00:08 > 0:00:11It's now finally here - enjoy yourselves.
0:00:11 > 0:00:12ALL. Yeah!
0:00:12 > 0:00:14It's quite a historic moment, actually.
0:00:14 > 0:00:17That's it, hen. I'm getting emotional now.
0:00:17 > 0:00:21Glasgow, Spring 2015, the Western, Yorkhill...
0:00:23 > 0:00:25..the Victoria Infirmary
0:00:25 > 0:00:27and the Southern General hospitals are closing.
0:00:29 > 0:00:32All four will move into this one, massive, new state-of-the-art
0:00:32 > 0:00:35hospital, full of the latest technology.
0:00:35 > 0:00:38'Attention, automatic transport.'
0:00:38 > 0:00:42It's like an American TV hospital.
0:00:42 > 0:00:44Over a decade in the planning,
0:00:44 > 0:00:47it's set to revolutionise health care in the city.
0:00:51 > 0:00:53And it's finally time to open the doors.
0:00:53 > 0:00:56Our doors are locked and we don't have a key
0:00:56 > 0:00:59and I'm sure that'll be the only hiccup of the day.
0:00:59 > 0:01:01HE LAUGHS
0:01:01 > 0:01:03There are mixed feelings all round.
0:01:03 > 0:01:05How many years?
0:01:05 > 0:01:0643 years.
0:01:06 > 0:01:07Oh, my word! Yeah!
0:01:09 > 0:01:11A bit sad, actually. I think I would
0:01:11 > 0:01:15maybe keep my staff and they can keep their new building.
0:01:16 > 0:01:18But how well will four-into-one really go?
0:01:20 > 0:01:2454 is full. 55 is full.
0:01:24 > 0:01:25Right, so we need to get beds now.
0:01:25 > 0:01:28Only time will tell.
0:01:29 > 0:01:30Exciting.
0:01:32 > 0:01:35Oh, I'm not used to modern stuff.
0:01:52 > 0:01:56In the largest operation of its kind ever undertaken in Britain,
0:01:56 > 0:02:00four of Glasgow's oldest hospitals are preparing to close their doors.
0:02:02 > 0:02:06All four must move hundreds of patients, beds and staff
0:02:06 > 0:02:10into this new super-hospital over a period of just six weeks.
0:02:14 > 0:02:17The first hospital due to make the big move is
0:02:17 > 0:02:20the Southern General, right next door to the new building.
0:02:24 > 0:02:25Hello. Ward Four Sister.
0:02:27 > 0:02:30Sister Susan Montgomery is in charge of Ward Four.
0:02:30 > 0:02:32Today, she is packing up ahead of the big move.
0:02:32 > 0:02:34Right, that's fine. Right, OK.
0:02:34 > 0:02:37That's OK, isn't it? Yeah, you need... Yeah, 25kg.
0:02:37 > 0:02:38You need two people to carry it.
0:02:38 > 0:02:41OK, Erin, you couldn't help me carry it down, could you?
0:02:43 > 0:02:47I trained here. I've pretty much worked in all of the wards
0:02:47 > 0:02:51and it feels like a home-from-home, which is a bit sad, really.
0:02:51 > 0:02:54So I'm just going to check your blood pressure again, OK?
0:02:54 > 0:02:57It's, it's all been fine but we need to keep an eye on it.
0:02:57 > 0:03:00I won't get to Marbella this year!
0:03:00 > 0:03:01No.
0:03:04 > 0:03:07The buildings are fabulous historical buildings
0:03:07 > 0:03:12that are probably not fit for the modern-day health service.
0:03:13 > 0:03:16It's a very difficult working environment.
0:03:16 > 0:03:21Heating the hot water, the cockroaches,
0:03:21 > 0:03:29the constant need of repairs - it's very frustrating
0:03:29 > 0:03:32The ambition behind this huge project is to improve health care
0:03:32 > 0:03:39in the west of Scotland.
0:03:39 > 0:03:42Having large numbers of patients in one place
0:03:42 > 0:03:44also makes medical research easier.
0:03:47 > 0:03:49There are just six weeks before the new
0:03:49 > 0:03:51South Glasgow University Hospital is due to open.
0:03:51 > 0:03:54Well, that's wide enough, you, you know what I'm looking for...
0:03:54 > 0:03:57At the deliveries entrance, Technical Manager Frances Wrath
0:03:57 > 0:04:00is feeling the pressure.
0:04:00 > 0:04:02Yes, er, I'm desperate for it, uh-huh.
0:04:04 > 0:04:08This is generally every day in here for deliveries.
0:04:08 > 0:04:12We have about ?60 million worth of equipment over...
0:04:12 > 0:04:15a kind of four/five week period coming in here.
0:04:15 > 0:04:18There's 7,500 rooms so everything tends to,
0:04:18 > 0:04:19tends to be a big order.
0:04:28 > 0:04:29This is our big week where
0:04:29 > 0:04:33over ?7 million worth of equipment will come in.
0:04:33 > 0:04:37Why we taking all the protection off the fridges at the moment?
0:04:39 > 0:04:42Because it means we'd need to bring it back down the stair.
0:04:42 > 0:04:45Aye, but we've got a scanner coming in today at 11,
0:04:45 > 0:04:47so what I need is this area kind of clear.
0:04:49 > 0:04:52The scanner which is coming in today is a cardiac scanner
0:04:52 > 0:04:55for our children's imaging department.
0:04:55 > 0:04:58I think it's the first of its kind in Britain.
0:04:58 > 0:05:01It's cost us about ?1.4 million in total.
0:05:01 > 0:05:03Brand-new, state of the art.
0:05:05 > 0:05:07It's always a worry it'll get under the door.
0:05:07 > 0:05:10The internal door's the lower one, isn't it?
0:05:10 > 0:05:12You can drop that.
0:05:12 > 0:05:14Right, are we going to manage it?
0:05:14 > 0:05:16NOISE DROWNS SPEECH
0:05:17 > 0:05:18Yeah.
0:05:22 > 0:05:24Just this bit here at the end.
0:05:31 > 0:05:33In just a few weeks, every single patient
0:05:33 > 0:05:37from the old Southern General must make the move to the new hospital.
0:05:40 > 0:05:43The speciality with the most patients will be
0:05:43 > 0:05:45the Respiratory Department.
0:05:45 > 0:05:48Lung disease is one of the biggest health
0:05:48 > 0:05:50problems in the west of Scotland.
0:05:50 > 0:05:52So what do you think - chest infection?
0:05:52 > 0:05:56A fact consultant Kevin Blythe deals with every day.
0:05:56 > 0:05:58Hi, Mrs McNeil.
0:05:58 > 0:06:02Kevin's patient Catherine McNeil has lung cancer, a disease this
0:06:02 > 0:06:06region has a higher incidence of than any other part of the UK.
0:06:06 > 0:06:08We're obviously having a look,
0:06:08 > 0:06:10just to try and establish for you
0:06:10 > 0:06:15whether this tumour has spread into the lining of the lung, OK?
0:06:15 > 0:06:17And will I be in overnight tonight?
0:06:17 > 0:06:20I think when we spoke to your husband last night, we thought
0:06:20 > 0:06:23we might keep you overnight. I think he's hoping you might, aye.
0:06:23 > 0:06:26Is he? Do you think he's got a party planned?
0:06:26 > 0:06:28A wee bit of cold stuff.
0:06:29 > 0:06:32I was appointed as a consultant here in 2009,
0:06:32 > 0:06:34so it's been about six years.
0:06:34 > 0:06:37Is it still cold? No, it's fine now. It's all right now.
0:06:37 > 0:06:40'Mixed feelings, I think, about moving.
0:06:40 > 0:06:43'I've a bit of affection for the old place.'
0:06:43 > 0:06:46It's not just lung cancer that keeps the unit busy.
0:06:46 > 0:06:49Glasgow's industrial heritage has left the population with
0:06:49 > 0:06:52some of the highest levels of asbestos-related respiratory
0:06:52 > 0:06:53diseases anywhere on the planet.
0:06:55 > 0:06:57We've a large proportion of beds in this hospital
0:06:57 > 0:07:00and we have a large proportion of beds in the new hospital
0:07:00 > 0:07:04and that really reflects the amount of disease.
0:07:04 > 0:07:06In the Southern, we have about 36 chest patients
0:07:06 > 0:07:08at any one time.
0:07:08 > 0:07:10When we move into the new hospital
0:07:10 > 0:07:14we will have the entire seventh floor,
0:07:14 > 0:07:15which is 112 beds.
0:07:17 > 0:07:20The new chest unit will have 17 consultants
0:07:20 > 0:07:24and will account for a tenth of all in-patient beds in the new hospital.
0:07:33 > 0:07:36This hospital will bring maternity, adults' and children's
0:07:36 > 0:07:41services all together onto one site for the first time in Glasgow.
0:07:41 > 0:07:44One benefit of this will be that babies can be kept on the same
0:07:44 > 0:07:47site as their mothers if problems arise during birth.
0:07:51 > 0:07:54Once all four hospitals have moved into the new site,
0:07:54 > 0:07:58a workforce equivalent to the population of a small town
0:07:58 > 0:08:02will care for hundreds of thousands of patients every year.
0:08:02 > 0:08:07The new building has the largest floor space of any hospital in the UK.
0:08:07 > 0:08:11Coming up with a design that was fit for purpose was a huge undertaking.
0:08:13 > 0:08:17The task fell to a large firm of London-based architects
0:08:17 > 0:08:19with an expertise in hospital design.
0:08:21 > 0:08:23Neil Murphy led the team.
0:08:25 > 0:08:28It is, you know, as I understand it, it's the biggest one built
0:08:28 > 0:08:31by the NHS and the biggest one in the UK.
0:08:31 > 0:08:33It's pretty major, you know.
0:08:33 > 0:08:37Nothing that takes five years ultimately to physically build
0:08:37 > 0:08:39is a small project.
0:08:40 > 0:08:44The design was inspired by Glasgow's ship-building heritage.
0:08:44 > 0:08:47The 12-storey adult building the dock,
0:08:47 > 0:08:49to the children's hospital ship.
0:08:51 > 0:08:54The main building centres around a vast central atrium which is
0:08:54 > 0:08:57large enough to fit a jumbo jet inside.
0:08:57 > 0:09:01The bottom three floors of the adult building house all the acute
0:09:01 > 0:09:04services such as A E and theatres.
0:09:04 > 0:09:08The wards are arranged over the top eight floors.
0:09:08 > 0:09:11In terms of the adult tower it's quite a welcoming building.
0:09:11 > 0:09:13It's quite open, open-armed.
0:09:13 > 0:09:15Hospitals are very, very complex
0:09:15 > 0:09:18and what we were keen to do was make this building
0:09:18 > 0:09:24a building that was very, very easy to find your way around within.
0:09:25 > 0:09:28Art has been used at key locations in the hospital
0:09:28 > 0:09:30to help visitors find their way around.
0:09:33 > 0:09:35The building design plays its part, too.
0:09:35 > 0:09:38With round windows used in doors inside the children's hospital
0:09:38 > 0:09:40and rectangular in the adults.
0:09:42 > 0:09:45It was very, very important to the NHS
0:09:45 > 0:09:49that we created an environment that wouldn't stymie them in the future.
0:09:49 > 0:09:52So they can shift the number of beds on how they nurse it
0:09:52 > 0:09:56and how they look after and how they monitor their patients.
0:10:00 > 0:10:04The new hospital is being fitted with all the very latest kit.
0:10:04 > 0:10:07From wireless-connected TVs in every room
0:10:07 > 0:10:09to pneumatic tubes transporting blood samples.
0:10:10 > 0:10:14In the basement, robots will carry food, drugs and equipment
0:10:14 > 0:10:16via designated corridors and lifts.
0:10:20 > 0:10:22This is a hi-tech hospital built for the future.
0:10:22 > 0:10:25ROBOT. Attention! Vehicle changes...
0:10:28 > 0:10:29When the hospital opens,
0:10:29 > 0:10:32the first arrivals will be to outpatient clinics.
0:10:33 > 0:10:36Today, a group of volunteers have been brought in
0:10:36 > 0:10:40to test how easy it will be for them to use some of the new technology
0:10:40 > 0:10:42and to find their way around.
0:10:42 > 0:10:46And today, we're really asking you to come in as guinea pigs
0:10:46 > 0:10:49and throwing you in the deep end to try out
0:10:49 > 0:10:51some of our patient appointment system.
0:10:51 > 0:10:55We've got some self-check-in booths that we want you to try out.
0:11:00 > 0:11:03I'm Margaret, I'm the sister from outpatients. Oh, right.
0:11:03 > 0:11:04Looking forward to it.
0:11:04 > 0:11:07I think there's a wee bit of apprehension, as well.
0:11:07 > 0:11:10Obviously, you want everything to work.
0:11:10 > 0:11:13I always say we're the shop window to the rest of the hospital.
0:11:13 > 0:11:15If this is your first experience of a hospital,
0:11:15 > 0:11:17we really need to get it right.
0:11:19 > 0:11:20I think it's this way.
0:11:22 > 0:11:23That's me.
0:11:23 > 0:11:26A Therapy. Do you think that means something?
0:11:26 > 0:11:28Go down there. You'll be down there. B. B.
0:11:28 > 0:11:31There's another floor over there.
0:11:34 > 0:11:36We're lost. Hah!
0:11:36 > 0:11:38Um...we should be here.
0:11:41 > 0:11:42They need more signs, definitely,
0:11:42 > 0:11:44because the signs that were there,
0:11:44 > 0:11:47they didn't match where it actually was.
0:11:53 > 0:11:56From operating theatres to toilet cubicles,
0:11:56 > 0:12:00every inch of this vast building has been scrutinised by medical teams
0:12:00 > 0:12:02who worked closely with the architects.
0:12:05 > 0:12:07From day one, Consultant Sandy Binning
0:12:07 > 0:12:11has been involved in the design of the brand-new Critical Care unit.
0:12:12 > 0:12:15It will be by far the largest in Scotland.
0:12:18 > 0:12:21We've designed it so that we've got some open areas
0:12:21 > 0:12:26and we've got some smaller areas that allow some privacy.
0:12:26 > 0:12:28So we've got a two-bed area here
0:12:28 > 0:12:30and we've got five beds straight over
0:12:30 > 0:12:33and then we've got some side rooms
0:12:33 > 0:12:36for patients who are an infection...infection risk.
0:12:37 > 0:12:40For Sandy, the top priority was that the majority of the unit
0:12:40 > 0:12:43would have large open-plan areas
0:12:43 > 0:12:45with good sight lines for nursing staff.
0:12:45 > 0:12:49A lot of our patients have problems with their brain.
0:12:49 > 0:12:53They are often... They're not themselves. They're often agitated
0:12:53 > 0:12:55and they can cause self-harm.
0:12:55 > 0:12:58We've got, um... The patients often have a lot of tubes
0:12:58 > 0:13:00in different parts of the body
0:13:00 > 0:13:02and when they're agitated, they can pull these out.
0:13:02 > 0:13:04Particularly their breathing tube.
0:13:04 > 0:13:06And so it's very important
0:13:06 > 0:13:09we have a really good view of our patients at all time.
0:13:10 > 0:13:14The sheer scale of the new unit will solve a major problem for Glasgow.
0:13:15 > 0:13:18One of our main problems is that we are four hospitals
0:13:18 > 0:13:20and we don't always have space in beds
0:13:20 > 0:13:22in each of the hospitals at the right time,
0:13:22 > 0:13:25so we're avoiding a lot of transfer of patients around the city.
0:13:25 > 0:13:28So all our patients are going to stay in the same site.
0:13:38 > 0:13:39Back at the Southern General,
0:13:39 > 0:13:43there are just ten days to go before the wards will close.
0:13:43 > 0:13:45Can I have a wee chat with you about Sunday? Yeah.
0:13:45 > 0:13:48Do you fancy coming in to help me?
0:13:48 > 0:13:50I was thinking you and George... Do I need to?
0:13:50 > 0:13:52I need you. OK, fine.
0:13:53 > 0:13:57In Susan's ward, patient Thomas Scott knows the old hospital well.
0:13:58 > 0:14:02Most of my family were born down here.
0:14:02 > 0:14:05I was brought up in Govan, so I'm a local.
0:14:05 > 0:14:08Well, I've been in for seven weeks now.
0:14:08 > 0:14:12And I've been told I more than likely need to be going over there.
0:14:14 > 0:14:16With the exception of the Critical Care Unit,
0:14:16 > 0:14:20the wards in the new hospital will all be ensuite single rooms.
0:14:21 > 0:14:24This decision was made in consultation with patient groups.
0:14:24 > 0:14:27It will mean huge changes for nurses.
0:14:27 > 0:14:30You can stand at a nurses' station in any ward and get a real sense
0:14:30 > 0:14:33of what's happening with the patients.
0:14:33 > 0:14:37You know, what the sense of the mood is.
0:14:37 > 0:14:40That's going to be very different in the new building.
0:14:41 > 0:14:43Moving to a ward with 28 single rooms
0:14:43 > 0:14:46will make ward rounds harder for nurses
0:14:46 > 0:14:49as every patient will have to be visited individually.
0:14:49 > 0:14:52Today, Susan has brought her team to the new hospital
0:14:52 > 0:14:54to prepare for the adjustment.
0:14:54 > 0:14:56Right, guys, shall we go and find a hoist, a regular one,
0:14:56 > 0:14:58and then we'll put Karen in it?
0:14:58 > 0:15:00So this is a medium sling. LAUGHTER
0:15:02 > 0:15:05How's that? I'm sure that's fine, Karen.
0:15:05 > 0:15:07'So, is it different from what we're used to?'
0:15:07 > 0:15:10'Yeah, I think there is probably a fear of the unknown
0:15:10 > 0:15:12'among the nurses at the moment.'
0:15:12 > 0:15:17Moving from a Nightingale-esque ward to all single room accommodation.
0:15:17 > 0:15:20It's something that, you know, we're not used to.
0:15:20 > 0:15:22It's an entirely new nursing model.
0:15:22 > 0:15:26I was worried when I first used it that I would squash the patient.
0:15:26 > 0:15:30Argh! Oh, Karen, just relax. It's fine. There you go.
0:15:30 > 0:15:31Whoo! OK?
0:15:35 > 0:15:36That's fine.
0:15:36 > 0:15:39Oh, now I know how the patients feel! That's good.
0:15:39 > 0:15:42Deep down, I would say that I'm confident
0:15:42 > 0:15:44that it's all going to go smoothly, you know.
0:15:44 > 0:15:46When I talk to my staff about what's happening,
0:15:46 > 0:15:49I think I'm filling them with confidence.
0:15:49 > 0:15:51That must be coming from somewhere!
0:15:51 > 0:15:53That wasn't pulling on your legs or anything, Karen?
0:15:53 > 0:15:55No, no. It was fine.
0:15:55 > 0:15:59Yeah. Obviously, if it was a real patient, we'd be giving them
0:15:59 > 0:16:02lots and lots of reassurance, but it's just Karen.
0:16:02 > 0:16:04LAUGHTER
0:16:08 > 0:16:11At the Southern General, Kevin is about to carry out
0:16:11 > 0:16:13his last ever procedure here.
0:16:15 > 0:16:17This is the Endoscopy Unit, where telescopic cameras are used
0:16:17 > 0:16:21to look inside different parts of the body.
0:16:21 > 0:16:23This used to be the eye theatre at the Southern.
0:16:23 > 0:16:26It's a theatre, rather than an Endoscopy Unit,
0:16:26 > 0:16:27which is a slight difference.
0:16:27 > 0:16:30Much like the wards, it's kind of been renovated to...
0:16:30 > 0:16:33to function in modern medicine.
0:16:33 > 0:16:38Um...it has its challenges.
0:16:38 > 0:16:41We quite often come in to find the heating's broken
0:16:41 > 0:16:44and we have to delay our cases by an hour or so
0:16:44 > 0:16:47to get the heating working again.
0:16:47 > 0:16:49That kind of happens once a month.
0:16:49 > 0:16:51You're not allergic to anything, is that right?
0:16:51 > 0:16:54Kevin's last patient is 78-year-old Peter Daniels,
0:16:54 > 0:16:55who has fluid on his lungs.
0:16:55 > 0:16:58Which points to a suspected tumour.
0:16:58 > 0:17:00We're going to do a thoracoscopy,
0:17:00 > 0:17:04which is a telescope that we're putting inside his chest.
0:17:06 > 0:17:09So he has miscollection fluid in his chest.
0:17:09 > 0:17:11And so we're going to try and relieve his symptoms
0:17:11 > 0:17:15and get him a diagnosis in the one sitting.
0:17:15 > 0:17:17I've actually got hot water. That's very unusual.
0:17:23 > 0:17:26If we try and get through this gap and look here,
0:17:26 > 0:17:28all the red-stained abnormality there
0:17:28 > 0:17:31is very likely to be a tumour.
0:17:31 > 0:17:34So we'll try and take some biopsies from here.
0:17:36 > 0:17:39Thoracoscopy is a very specialised process
0:17:39 > 0:17:42used to help swift diagnosis of lung diseases.
0:17:42 > 0:17:44Kevin and his team have been performing the procedure
0:17:44 > 0:17:46together for five years.
0:17:48 > 0:17:51Could you get a chest drain? Mm-hm.
0:17:51 > 0:17:53'We're moving to the new Endoscopy Unit,
0:17:53 > 0:17:56'we're going to have different staff.'
0:17:56 > 0:17:58Kevin's current team work at more than one hospital.
0:17:58 > 0:18:01And the service here runs just once a week.
0:18:03 > 0:18:06The new building will have a dedicated Endoscopy Unit
0:18:06 > 0:18:08which will be staffed fulltime.
0:18:08 > 0:18:12Not entirely reassured that it'll be better than it is here.
0:18:12 > 0:18:16It might be more difficult for a time, I think.
0:18:16 > 0:18:22I'm quite sad it's our last ever one, so... But carry on.
0:18:22 > 0:18:26We'll teach somebody else and they'll be absolutely great at it.
0:18:26 > 0:18:29A bit sad, actually. I think I would maybe keep my staff
0:18:29 > 0:18:31and they can keep their new building,
0:18:31 > 0:18:35but, er...we'll, er...we'll manage.
0:18:43 > 0:18:46It's the weekend before the first outpatient arrivals.
0:18:46 > 0:18:48And throughout the hospital, staff are preparing
0:18:48 > 0:18:51to get the new building ready for the public.
0:18:52 > 0:18:54For commissioning manager, Karen Connelly,
0:18:54 > 0:18:57it's a moment she's worked towards for years.
0:18:58 > 0:19:02Well, this desk, for the past 13 weeks has been used for
0:19:02 > 0:19:05our security team signing everybody in and out of the department.
0:19:05 > 0:19:09But as of tomorrow, it's a fully-operational reception desk
0:19:09 > 0:19:11for our patients and visitors coming in.
0:19:11 > 0:19:13So I just need to get it looking like that.
0:19:16 > 0:19:19ROBOT. Attention, automatic transport!
0:19:21 > 0:19:24It's now programmed, OK?
0:19:24 > 0:19:25I think that's a mistake.
0:19:27 > 0:19:29Well, I've been in since 6.30 this morning.
0:19:29 > 0:19:32We were here until 8.30 last night.
0:19:32 > 0:19:34We're going to probably be here until about 8.00 tonight.
0:19:34 > 0:19:36So it's been a long weekend for us.
0:19:44 > 0:19:47Today, the first patients will finally walk through
0:19:47 > 0:19:48the doors of the new hospital.
0:19:52 > 0:19:54We've waited about 15 years for these patients.
0:19:54 > 0:19:58And it's all about the patients this, er...hospital.
0:20:00 > 0:20:02It's a wonderful day. It's a great day.
0:20:07 > 0:20:09It's really, really big.
0:20:09 > 0:20:10It seems like a big, grand palace.
0:20:13 > 0:20:14Oh, it's amazing.
0:20:14 > 0:20:17The architecture in it is absolutely fantastic, you know.
0:20:17 > 0:20:20Every time you look up, it's just a different experience.
0:20:20 > 0:20:23It's a completely different vibe.
0:20:23 > 0:20:26Now it's a hospital, it's no longer a construction site,
0:20:26 > 0:20:28we're fully... well, not fully operational,
0:20:28 > 0:20:30but we're operational now and it is a hospital, so
0:20:30 > 0:20:32that's what we were aiming for.
0:20:42 > 0:20:45The second of the four hospitals due to move
0:20:45 > 0:20:46is the Victoria Infirmary.
0:20:53 > 0:20:55It has the smallest, but one of the busiest
0:20:55 > 0:20:58Accident and Emergency Departments in Glasgow.
0:21:03 > 0:21:07Hi, there. I'm Mel. I'm the nurse in charge tonight.
0:21:07 > 0:21:10Just having a wee look around to see who everybody is.
0:21:10 > 0:21:13Senior staff nurse Mel White has worked at the Victoria
0:21:13 > 0:21:16since the early '70s.
0:21:16 > 0:21:20I've been in the Victoria since I was...17.
0:21:20 > 0:21:23I am now 60.
0:21:23 > 0:21:27And...I know this place so well
0:21:27 > 0:21:31because as a night sister, we used to
0:21:31 > 0:21:33wander around the wards all night long.
0:21:35 > 0:21:37And I've just got such a great fondness of it.
0:21:50 > 0:21:52We've got patients all over the place in this department.
0:21:52 > 0:21:54'I usually like, if I can get the chance
0:21:54 > 0:21:56'to have a wee look around the department...'
0:21:56 > 0:21:58Hello. Hello. I'm Mel.
0:21:58 > 0:22:01..and put faces to conditions.
0:22:01 > 0:22:04And make sure they're all being looked after correctly.
0:22:04 > 0:22:06INCOMING CALL Excuse me.
0:22:06 > 0:22:09Mel has seen a lot of changes to A E in her 43 years.
0:22:11 > 0:22:15'Accident and Emergency was known then as the back door.
0:22:15 > 0:22:17'It wasn't a specialty.
0:22:17 > 0:22:22'And we didn't see anything like the numbers we see now.
0:22:22 > 0:22:26'Most of the GP patients went straight to the wards.
0:22:26 > 0:22:30'Whereas now, they all come through A E.'
0:22:30 > 0:22:32I've got a bed for you in Ward 12A.
0:22:32 > 0:22:37Just the other night, we were so overwhelmed with patients,
0:22:37 > 0:22:40we had nowhere to put anybody.
0:22:40 > 0:22:43A lot of the patients nowadays are very elderly
0:22:43 > 0:22:47and there aren't enough of us to look after the patients
0:22:47 > 0:22:49as they should be.
0:22:49 > 0:22:51We have to prioritise the jobs we do.
0:22:54 > 0:22:56Part of Mel's job as nurse in charge
0:22:56 > 0:23:00is to keep an eye on waiting times in the department and file reports
0:23:00 > 0:23:04if people wait longer than the government target of four hours.
0:23:04 > 0:23:07It's a job she will be doing in the new hospital, as well.
0:23:07 > 0:23:11And we've got little clocks on each patient.
0:23:11 > 0:23:14When they go black, it means they've been here more than four hours.
0:23:14 > 0:23:16So I've got to take a wee note of all these patients
0:23:16 > 0:23:20and find out the reasons why they've been delayed.
0:23:20 > 0:23:22Sorry.
0:23:22 > 0:23:24Two going to... Two going to surgery?
0:23:24 > 0:23:26The gentleman up in Room Six.
0:23:26 > 0:23:28One of the biggest changes at the new hospital
0:23:28 > 0:23:30will be the way emergency patients are dealt with.
0:23:33 > 0:23:36Instead of all emergencies coming through the doors of A E,
0:23:36 > 0:23:38people referred by their GPs
0:23:38 > 0:23:39will go to a new area in the hospital.
0:23:42 > 0:23:46The intention is to reduce admissions and shorten waiting times.
0:23:48 > 0:23:53I'm excited because I do... I'm hoping it'll be more trauma-related.
0:23:53 > 0:23:58The GP patients are all meant to be going to another area.
0:23:58 > 0:24:01So I hope it might be more like the A E
0:24:01 > 0:24:05that me and some of my older colleagues signed up for originally.
0:24:07 > 0:24:10In emergency medicine, speed of treatment is often critical.
0:24:12 > 0:24:14The crowning glory of the new hospital
0:24:14 > 0:24:16is an enormous rooftop helipad
0:24:16 > 0:24:19designed to ensure patients reach A E as fast as possible.
0:24:22 > 0:24:24Today, Emergency consultant, Phil Munro,
0:24:24 > 0:24:27and Commissioning manager, Karen Connelly,
0:24:27 > 0:24:31are waiting for the first test landing of the Air Ambulance.
0:24:31 > 0:24:33This helipad will see hundreds of landings come in
0:24:33 > 0:24:35from all over Scotland every year.
0:24:40 > 0:24:42Here's hoping there were no pile-ups on the M8.
0:24:42 > 0:24:45THEY LAUGH For the first one coming in!
0:24:47 > 0:24:50At the old hospital, patients are dropped in the car park
0:24:50 > 0:24:52and then taken by ambulance to A E.
0:24:54 > 0:24:57The helipad will vastly improve patient transfer times.
0:24:57 > 0:24:59Once it's fully up and running,
0:24:59 > 0:25:02patients will be taken straight to the Emergency Department
0:25:02 > 0:25:04from the roof via a ramp and high-speed lift.
0:25:07 > 0:25:10We're looking at reducing the transfer times down from,
0:25:10 > 0:25:12perhaps, 15 or 20 minutes minimum
0:25:12 > 0:25:14to less than five minutes,
0:25:14 > 0:25:16and making that whole process
0:25:16 > 0:25:18much simpler and smoother for patients,
0:25:18 > 0:25:21so it's actually pretty exciting for us.
0:25:21 > 0:25:24We've still got, obviously, a night-time one to do, and we've
0:25:24 > 0:25:27started communication going with the Search and Rescue guys.
0:25:28 > 0:25:34HELICOPTER BLADES WHIR
0:25:36 > 0:25:38SIRENS WAIL
0:25:40 > 0:25:43For the helipad to get its final sign-off,
0:25:43 > 0:25:46there must also be a test landing at night.
0:25:46 > 0:25:49HELICOPTER BLADES WHIR
0:25:49 > 0:25:51Tonight, the team are back on the roof,
0:25:51 > 0:25:53to see the Royal Navy Search and Rescue Service -
0:25:53 > 0:25:55who carry out land and sea rescues -
0:25:55 > 0:25:58land their huge Sea King helicopter on the roof in the dark.
0:26:10 > 0:26:14Now that's, sort of, all our approvals reached
0:26:14 > 0:26:16so the helipad is now ready to go operational.
0:26:16 > 0:26:19This was the last box ticked.
0:26:22 > 0:26:27HELICOPTER BLADES WHIR
0:26:34 > 0:26:36It's the first weekend of May at the new hospital.
0:26:40 > 0:26:45After years of planning, the big day has arrived.
0:26:45 > 0:26:47So, I'm Anne Harkness, I'm Director of Medicine,
0:26:47 > 0:26:48so I'm co-ordinating this weekend.
0:26:48 > 0:26:51OK, the plan today is to move the Coronary Care Unit,
0:26:51 > 0:26:53the Receiving Medical Unit, Ward 20,
0:26:53 > 0:26:55and Wards 22 and 25.
0:26:56 > 0:26:59To move Ward One, Two, Three, Four, Five and Six,
0:26:59 > 0:27:01and the Emergency Department will move.
0:27:04 > 0:27:05In the old Southern General,
0:27:05 > 0:27:07everything is ready for the big move.
0:27:07 > 0:27:11The meds are done, the CDs are done...
0:27:11 > 0:27:13Over the course of the weekend, almost 200 patients
0:27:13 > 0:27:15will be moved into the new hospital.
0:27:18 > 0:27:21Hundreds of empty beds await their arrival.
0:27:27 > 0:27:29The patients from Critical Care will be the first to be driven
0:27:29 > 0:27:32the short distance to the new hospital by ambulance.
0:27:36 > 0:27:40Dr Sandy Binning and his team are waiting to welcome Norma Silvers,
0:27:40 > 0:27:44who will be the very first inpatient in the whole hospital.
0:27:44 > 0:27:48This is a piece of history within the NHS in Glasgow, yeah.
0:27:51 > 0:27:53The staff seem excited.
0:27:53 > 0:27:56They just want to get started, I think.
0:28:01 > 0:28:03That's great.
0:28:03 > 0:28:06You see patients being transferred every day of our career,
0:28:06 > 0:28:08and it's just, it's just really exciting -
0:28:08 > 0:28:11quite emotional, actually.
0:28:11 > 0:28:12Hi, Norma! Hi, Norma!
0:28:16 > 0:28:19With the first inpatient safely settled into the Critical Care Unit,
0:28:19 > 0:28:23the huge task of moving the rest of the hospital gets underway.
0:28:29 > 0:28:32Accident and Emergency provides care around the clock.
0:28:32 > 0:28:35At the old Southern General, the staff are preparing
0:28:35 > 0:28:38for the exact moment the brand-new unit will take over
0:28:38 > 0:28:40and their doors will be closed for good.
0:28:42 > 0:28:46It is approximately seven o'clock just now
0:28:46 > 0:28:48so we've got another hour to go.
0:28:48 > 0:28:51We're still a fully-functioning Accident and Emergency
0:28:51 > 0:28:53right up until eight o'clock.
0:28:53 > 0:28:56At 7.59, the last patient is allowed to book in,
0:28:56 > 0:28:58and at eight o'clock, the new department opens.
0:29:01 > 0:29:04Locking a door that has been open for decades
0:29:04 > 0:29:06isn't without its challenges.
0:29:06 > 0:29:11At the moment, we've found two boxes of keys that look decidedly old.
0:29:11 > 0:29:14We've found the old College of Nursing door key -
0:29:14 > 0:29:20the College of Nursing ceased to exist in 1980-something.
0:29:20 > 0:29:23Christine, as the longest member running of the team,
0:29:23 > 0:29:27would you like do the honours and lock the department up?
0:29:27 > 0:29:29For the first time in its history,
0:29:29 > 0:29:33the doors of A E at the Southern General are closed.
0:29:33 > 0:29:35It feels quite emotional, actually.
0:29:35 > 0:29:37I wasn't prepared for this.
0:29:42 > 0:29:44Over in the new Emergency Department,
0:29:44 > 0:29:48the team are about to open their doors for the very first time.
0:29:48 > 0:29:51Did you make a decision? Are we ready to open the doors?
0:29:51 > 0:29:53We need the standby radio here,
0:29:53 > 0:29:55and once that's here, we're... We'll be ready to go.
0:29:55 > 0:29:59Yeah, so the theory is, we open the doors at eight o'clock.
0:29:59 > 0:30:02So, I started as a consultant in the Southern 23 years ago.
0:30:02 > 0:30:05I was promised this building would be up and running
0:30:05 > 0:30:06within ten years.
0:30:06 > 0:30:09It's now finally here. Enjoy yourselves.
0:30:09 > 0:30:11LAUGHTER
0:30:11 > 0:30:13Say cheese!
0:30:13 > 0:30:16There you go, guys. Yeah! Thank you very much.
0:30:18 > 0:30:22As the emergency teams await the arrival of their first patient,
0:30:22 > 0:30:25up on the ninth floor, Susan is doing her best to get her
0:30:25 > 0:30:28new ward ready for the arrival of her first patients.
0:30:30 > 0:30:31I... No...
0:30:33 > 0:30:35I need them today. David, I can't...
0:30:35 > 0:30:38I need more. One pod key.
0:30:38 > 0:30:41It's just the master key for the...
0:30:41 > 0:30:45The patients' lockers - we call them pods -
0:30:45 > 0:30:47and basically, all the patients' individual drugs
0:30:47 > 0:30:49go in these pods, and at the moment,
0:30:49 > 0:30:54the wards have only got one single key for 28,
0:30:54 > 0:30:56you know, to cover 28, and we're...
0:30:56 > 0:30:57You know, we work in teams,
0:30:57 > 0:30:59and that's really an impossible situation.
0:31:02 > 0:31:05Over in the old building, Susan's staff are being
0:31:05 > 0:31:08kept on course by Lead Surgery Nurse Pamela McQuarrie.
0:31:08 > 0:31:10It could be that, at a moment's notice,
0:31:10 > 0:31:13the command centre advise us to tell you,
0:31:13 > 0:31:15"Your patients are moving now."
0:31:15 > 0:31:16Are you ready for the big move?
0:31:16 > 0:31:18Well, we'll see if it lives up to...
0:31:18 > 0:31:21Hundreds of extra staff will be on duty all weekend to ensure
0:31:21 > 0:31:24patients are monitored throughout the move.
0:31:24 > 0:31:28Everyday business, like this doctor's rounds, must also carry on as normal.
0:31:28 > 0:31:31So, you've got two people still to do? Yeah, it's transferring...
0:31:31 > 0:31:33Can you put it...? Yes. So that's prioritised,
0:31:33 > 0:31:34and it's getting done now.
0:31:34 > 0:31:36Everything is static, which is exactly what we want.
0:31:36 > 0:31:38Notes - if you could get the notes to the end of the bed
0:31:38 > 0:31:40so that we're all ready to go?
0:31:40 > 0:31:42How are you? Fine, I'm lovely.
0:31:42 > 0:31:44Good. Great, that's all looking good.
0:31:44 > 0:31:45Are you ready for the move?
0:31:45 > 0:31:48I'm quite interested to see what like it is.
0:31:48 > 0:31:50I hope it's money well spent.
0:31:50 > 0:31:54Sheena, can I take you aside a wee second?
0:31:54 > 0:31:57Two wee seconds...
0:31:57 > 0:31:59I need an escort with him, but he'll be fine.
0:31:59 > 0:32:00He's just had a set off him,
0:32:00 > 0:32:02and he's definitely to go to ARU just now.
0:32:02 > 0:32:04OK, and is he going in a chair? Yes.
0:32:04 > 0:32:05So, is he...? With oxygen.
0:32:05 > 0:32:07And somebody's putting him on the chair?
0:32:07 > 0:32:09He will be going on the chair in a minute. OK.
0:32:09 > 0:32:11Bye. Okey doke, that's us off.
0:32:13 > 0:32:16Wait a wee second, and let me get tablets. No, no, no, no. No.
0:32:16 > 0:32:19You go back to doing what you're doing...
0:32:25 > 0:32:27In one short ambulance journey,
0:32:27 > 0:32:29the patients from Susan's ward
0:32:29 > 0:32:32will move from the 19th to the 21st century.
0:32:50 > 0:32:51It's some place, huh? Oh.
0:32:51 > 0:32:52Aye, it's massive.
0:32:54 > 0:32:55See, I thought I was at the airport.
0:32:55 > 0:32:58Aye, it's the departures lounge, though, isn't it?
0:32:58 > 0:32:59Where are we going, Tenerife?
0:33:01 > 0:33:05The first patient's coming in, so we're just preparing the nurse.
0:33:08 > 0:33:10Hello. Welcome! Thank you.
0:33:10 > 0:33:12And how was the transfer over?
0:33:12 > 0:33:15Aye, it was OK. Obviously, it's a logistical nightmare.
0:33:15 > 0:33:17What am I going to watch?
0:33:17 > 0:33:20I'll watch the snooker because all the rest is rubbish.
0:33:20 > 0:33:23'It's like going into a five-star hotel.
0:33:23 > 0:33:25'It's all mods and cons.'
0:33:25 > 0:33:28I'm just still getting used to the TV.
0:33:28 > 0:33:30You know, things like that.
0:33:30 > 0:33:31Well, I'm only in, so
0:33:31 > 0:33:35I've not taken a shower or I've not used the facilities,
0:33:35 > 0:33:37but everything's there for me.
0:33:42 > 0:33:44Back in Ward Four, the end is in sight.
0:33:49 > 0:33:51We're lucky last.
0:33:51 > 0:33:53Yes, they've left the best to last.
0:33:53 > 0:33:55Left the best to last.
0:33:55 > 0:33:58I'm looking forward to it, definitely, yes. I really am.
0:34:01 > 0:34:05For the nursing staff, the departure of the very last patient
0:34:05 > 0:34:06marks the end of an era.
0:34:06 > 0:34:08Bye! See you later, Mr Scott!
0:34:08 > 0:34:10Well done, folks. All right.
0:34:10 > 0:34:13What's happening with...? Oh, he's getting a cheer.
0:34:13 > 0:34:16Rebecca... There you are. That's it all, hen.
0:34:16 > 0:34:19'Strange seeing the ward empty, though.'
0:34:19 > 0:34:21It'll be weird...
0:34:21 > 0:34:24but it needs a change.
0:34:24 > 0:34:27I'm getting emotional now.
0:34:27 > 0:34:29Are you, hen?
0:34:29 > 0:34:31Uh-huh, it is.
0:34:31 > 0:34:38'I was actually born here,'
0:34:38 > 0:34:41there's never been a time when there's been
0:34:41 > 0:34:43no patients at all in the whole of the building,
0:34:43 > 0:34:44so it's quite a...
0:34:44 > 0:34:47It's quite a historic moment, actually. PHONE BEEPS
0:35:10 > 0:35:14Thomas is the last patient to come in from Susan's old ward...
0:35:14 > 0:35:15Are you OK there, sir? Yeah.
0:35:15 > 0:35:18..and his arrival signals the beginning of a new chapter.
0:35:20 > 0:35:23All right, Thomas, we've got you here in one piece. Yes.
0:35:23 > 0:35:25You know, you're the last patient to arrive -
0:35:25 > 0:35:26we've all been waiting for you.
0:35:26 > 0:35:31I'm just amazed at everything, you know, all around me there.
0:35:31 > 0:35:35I'm just... Awe inspiring, it was.
0:35:35 > 0:35:38The last patient's just arrived, and he told me he had a...
0:35:38 > 0:35:42he had a guard of honour as he left Ward Four.
0:35:42 > 0:35:44'You know, this is the important bit that's been done -
0:35:44 > 0:35:48'the patients are here and they're all safe.'
0:35:48 > 0:35:52VOICE FROM TELEVISION. Couldn't have played that any better.
0:35:52 > 0:35:54APPLAUSE
0:36:03 > 0:36:07He was updated to me at about 30 minutes out. Is that OK?
0:36:07 > 0:36:10Six hours into the first shift in the newly-opened Emergency Department,
0:36:10 > 0:36:12and the team receive a call
0:36:12 > 0:36:15to say that the first air ambulance is on its way.
0:36:15 > 0:36:17He probably has significant chest trauma,
0:36:17 > 0:36:21so it's either equivalent flight to Raigmore with no tertiary input,
0:36:21 > 0:36:24or here, so it gives us enough time to be able to do that.
0:36:24 > 0:36:25Is that all right?
0:36:25 > 0:36:27It would appear to be a motorcyclist.
0:36:27 > 0:36:31I think a Belgian motorcyclist, who's come off his bike at speed,
0:36:31 > 0:36:33so we're just making the arrangements to make sure
0:36:33 > 0:36:35that all the things are in place to make it
0:36:35 > 0:36:38a smooth transition of the helicopter landing,
0:36:38 > 0:36:41through into resus, to make sure there's no other interventions
0:36:41 > 0:36:44that we need to do that might have changed since the roadside.
0:36:46 > 0:36:47Come on, let's go...
0:36:47 > 0:36:50Consultant Cieran McKiernan is headed to the roof with
0:36:50 > 0:36:54Senior Staff Nurse David McGlynn to meet the air ambulance.
0:36:54 > 0:36:55First patient, first minor,
0:36:55 > 0:36:57first standby, first intubation,
0:36:57 > 0:37:00first helicopter with a real patient.
0:37:01 > 0:37:03So...
0:37:07 > 0:37:10I'd like to think it's cos I was the best that I got chosen to do it,
0:37:10 > 0:37:13but I think I was just the last to put my name down for annual leave.
0:37:15 > 0:37:18And Karen and the hospital firefighters are on hand to
0:37:18 > 0:37:19support the medics.
0:37:23 > 0:37:26This hospital covers over 40% of Scotland's population.
0:37:29 > 0:37:31When it comes to suspected neural and spinal emergencies,
0:37:31 > 0:37:34it covers the entire country.
0:37:35 > 0:37:39This patient has been flown 200 miles from Plockton in the West Highlands.
0:37:39 > 0:37:43HELICOPTER BLADES WHIR
0:37:53 > 0:37:55As soon as the helicopter has landed,
0:37:55 > 0:37:58he is whisked straight into the lift.
0:38:00 > 0:38:02Belgian motorcyclist Christof Leveveran
0:38:02 > 0:38:04was found with a serious chest injury
0:38:04 > 0:38:08and initially treated at the roadside by air ambulance doctors.
0:38:12 > 0:38:17A motorcyclist travelling on a single-track road has, I think,
0:38:17 > 0:38:24struck a rock, landing face-first onto head, and left side of chest.
0:38:24 > 0:38:28This injury occurred approximately four hours ago. OK.
0:38:28 > 0:38:31When we arrived, he had a GCS of 15,
0:38:31 > 0:38:33was moving all four limbs,
0:38:33 > 0:38:35but had clear respiratory difficulties.
0:38:35 > 0:38:38Pretty good colour, he's got good count refill.
0:38:38 > 0:38:39Pupils are small and reactive.
0:38:39 > 0:38:41I think we're that far, timing-wise, down the line.
0:38:41 > 0:38:44I'm pretty happy to top him, do you want me to stick a...
0:38:44 > 0:38:45The team will stabilise the patient,
0:38:45 > 0:38:46and check to see if he has any
0:38:46 > 0:38:48immediately life-threatening problems.
0:38:54 > 0:38:56Propofol is running, 50 of Roxin,
0:38:56 > 0:38:59chest drain's in, heart line's in,
0:38:59 > 0:39:00bloods are away.
0:39:00 > 0:39:03Cieran, you agree with me, he's not likely...
0:39:03 > 0:39:04he's not going to be likely to need to
0:39:04 > 0:39:07go to theatre prior to scan? No, absolutely, yeah, no, not at all.
0:39:07 > 0:39:09So the plan is tidy up and pan-scan? Yeah.
0:39:11 > 0:39:14Historically-wise, we would've done a whole series of X-rays
0:39:14 > 0:39:16to see if there was any injuries,
0:39:16 > 0:39:18but given the fact that we're now in this big new hospital,
0:39:18 > 0:39:19we have a CT scanner.
0:39:19 > 0:39:22We have several CT scanners about 50 yards away,
0:39:22 > 0:39:25so we've arranged just to go straight for a scan, a CT scan.
0:39:25 > 0:39:27All right? Yeah.
0:39:27 > 0:39:30The hospital has been designed so that A E is close to other areas
0:39:30 > 0:39:33necessary for the treatment of seriously ill patients.
0:39:35 > 0:39:37This means the sickest patients should be diagnosed
0:39:37 > 0:39:39and treated as quickly as possible.
0:39:41 > 0:39:45Christof has a full body CT scan which reveals no further injuries.
0:39:49 > 0:39:51Three hours after arriving at the hospital,
0:39:51 > 0:39:54the first air ambulance patient is admitted to the Critical Care Unit
0:39:54 > 0:39:55on the second floor.
0:40:08 > 0:40:10It's the first week at the new hospital,
0:40:10 > 0:40:14and Dr Kevin Blyth is in his brand-new Respiratory Ward.
0:40:14 > 0:40:16I think everybody's... everybody likes their setting,
0:40:16 > 0:40:19everyone likes the environment, everyone likes having TV.
0:40:19 > 0:40:20We're lost most of the time so it's,
0:40:20 > 0:40:23kind of, lots of wandering around.
0:40:23 > 0:40:24What was that?
0:40:24 > 0:40:26Kevin's patient Catherine McNeil has come in to have some
0:40:26 > 0:40:29further tests for her lung cancer.
0:40:29 > 0:40:33This is...something else.
0:40:33 > 0:40:34Like a hotel.
0:40:36 > 0:40:38En-suite, everything.
0:40:38 > 0:40:39It's absolutely lovely.
0:40:39 > 0:40:42How are you? All right...
0:40:42 > 0:40:45Catherine already knows that her cancer is advanced.
0:40:45 > 0:40:47Today's procedure will help her to decide
0:40:47 > 0:40:49whether to have further treatment.
0:40:49 > 0:40:51I know we've spoken about this before,
0:40:51 > 0:40:54but do you know roughly what we're going to do today? Mmm-hmm.
0:40:54 > 0:40:56OK. Not too much information, please. No.
0:40:56 > 0:40:59I won't give you too much, just enough so that you,
0:40:59 > 0:41:01you can sign the form.
0:41:01 > 0:41:07I have discussed with my husband funeral arrangements.
0:41:07 > 0:41:11I have cleaned out my wardrobe.
0:41:11 > 0:41:14I got rid of the clothes I don't need.
0:41:14 > 0:41:16Erm...
0:41:16 > 0:41:19If I don't do that now, somebody's left at the end of the day
0:41:19 > 0:41:20to do it all.
0:41:22 > 0:41:24Where do you want it?
0:41:24 > 0:41:25What we would, it would be good to have,
0:41:25 > 0:41:27see if we can have the trolley in here? Uh-huh.
0:41:27 > 0:41:29Catherine's procedure will take place in
0:41:29 > 0:41:32the new purpose-built Endoscopy Unit,
0:41:32 > 0:41:36which Kevin and his new nursing team are still finding their way around.
0:41:37 > 0:41:39'We have all these...' That's a new one, yeah.
0:41:39 > 0:41:42'pieces of kit that we didn't have before,
0:41:42 > 0:41:45'but there other benefits.
0:41:45 > 0:41:48'Clinical research is a major priority for
0:41:48 > 0:41:50'quite a number of us in Glasgow.'
0:41:50 > 0:41:52Geoff, can you pop that screen round?
0:41:52 > 0:41:54'But actually delivering...'
0:41:54 > 0:41:57that expertise, and delivering trials, in patients
0:41:57 > 0:42:02who are scattered in half a dozen or more places, is difficult.
0:42:02 > 0:42:05'And that's going to be quite a lot easier to do
0:42:05 > 0:42:08'in a big centre like this hospital.'
0:42:08 > 0:42:10How are you doing? Are you OK? Aye.
0:42:10 > 0:42:16'And our own unit's main focus is in detecting disease better,
0:42:16 > 0:42:20'earlier and more efficiently.'
0:42:20 > 0:42:25Early diagnosis, particularly for cancer, can be life-saving.
0:42:25 > 0:42:27For Catherine, the hope is that the right treatment
0:42:27 > 0:42:30may prolong her life by a few months. All right, OK...
0:42:30 > 0:42:32Kelly, that's white...white balance.
0:42:32 > 0:42:34Are we on? Can we just...?
0:42:34 > 0:42:36It says "DF is not connected" or something.
0:42:36 > 0:42:37It's not connected properly.
0:42:37 > 0:42:40Do you want to just take the scope out and reconnect?
0:42:40 > 0:42:42That's the problem with new equipment.
0:42:44 > 0:42:46Well, we did... Well, we didn't...
0:42:46 > 0:42:48Just turn it off. Turn it off. Yeah, turn everything off.
0:42:51 > 0:42:54OK, turn it back on.
0:42:54 > 0:42:56Try again.
0:42:56 > 0:42:59Yeah, done. Is that it?
0:43:00 > 0:43:03Sorry about that, Mrs McNeil, technical failure,
0:43:03 > 0:43:04but we're good to go.
0:43:07 > 0:43:11'The question that's now being posed is whether the cancer has
0:43:11 > 0:43:14'spread out of her lung into the glands and the centre of her chest.'
0:43:14 > 0:43:16Let's see if we can get a sample there.
0:43:16 > 0:43:21MACHINE HISSES OK, good.
0:43:21 > 0:43:24That's essentially some tissue from inside the gland,
0:43:24 > 0:43:26that we would then send, and see if...
0:43:26 > 0:43:28if that has cancer cells inside
0:43:28 > 0:43:32or whether it's just inflammatory stuff.
0:43:32 > 0:43:33And then we just...
0:43:33 > 0:43:35Samples like these are sent straight
0:43:35 > 0:43:38to the new laboratory across the road for analysis.
0:43:40 > 0:43:43Miles of pneumatic tubes run from wards and departments
0:43:43 > 0:43:45throughout the hospital,
0:43:45 > 0:43:47connecting them to this huge facility.
0:43:50 > 0:43:53When the hospital is fully up and running,
0:43:53 > 0:43:56a huge workforce will process and analyse thousands of
0:43:56 > 0:43:58specimens and samples here, round the clock.
0:43:59 > 0:44:01MACHINE RATTLES AND BEEPS
0:44:01 > 0:44:05It has one of the largest automated systems for analysing blood samples
0:44:05 > 0:44:08in the world,
0:44:08 > 0:44:11and aims to turn urgent results around in less than an hour.
0:44:23 > 0:44:25Back at the Victoria Infirmary,
0:44:25 > 0:44:28it's Mel's very last night shift in Accident and Emergency
0:44:28 > 0:44:31before the whole hospital closes at the weekend.
0:44:31 > 0:44:35It's looking, actually, OK just now. It's not too busy.
0:44:35 > 0:44:37Busy is when we completely run out of space,
0:44:37 > 0:44:40and they're queuing up the corridor with ambulance patients,
0:44:40 > 0:44:43but we'll see.
0:44:43 > 0:44:46That happens frequently in here,
0:44:46 > 0:44:48cos, as you can see, it's a very small department.
0:44:48 > 0:44:52We don't have an awful lot of room for things. Hello? Hi, guys...
0:44:52 > 0:44:54So, carry on.
0:44:55 > 0:44:57I felt really sad before I came in tonight.
0:44:57 > 0:45:02I shed a wee tear on my way in, but I've got too many distractions
0:45:02 > 0:45:08just now, so I think once we get all this cleared, hopefully...
0:45:08 > 0:45:12I might have time to think about it a wee bit more.
0:45:12 > 0:45:14This chap, man, said that he's just to...
0:45:14 > 0:45:18'I've only had one visit to the new hospital and it's like something
0:45:18 > 0:45:20'I never thought I'd see real.'
0:45:20 > 0:45:26It's almost like an American TV hospital.
0:45:28 > 0:45:30It sounds very good on paper,
0:45:30 > 0:45:34but it's going to be covering such a huge area,
0:45:34 > 0:45:37that my concerns are that the majors area won't be big enough.
0:45:40 > 0:45:42As usual on the night shift at the Victoria,
0:45:42 > 0:45:45it's waiting times that preoccupy much of Mel's time.
0:45:45 > 0:45:49Yes... We've got quite a few round in the minors still waiting to see
0:45:49 > 0:45:52the surgical on call,
0:45:52 > 0:45:56but he's busy up in the wards with somebody that's very unwell,
0:45:56 > 0:45:59so that's all a wee bit of a stand-still,
0:45:59 > 0:46:03and they're the ones that are all over four hours now because...
0:46:03 > 0:46:06and that's one of the reasons that we can't help.
0:46:06 > 0:46:11I came in about 9pm, and it's now nearly 11pm...
0:46:11 > 0:46:15but there's always people who are iller than oneself, so...
0:46:15 > 0:46:16Yes.
0:46:18 > 0:46:21'If you don't tell people what's happening and why,
0:46:21 > 0:46:24'they obviously get very angry,
0:46:24 > 0:46:25'and a lot of the time,
0:46:25 > 0:46:30'people just don't accept the reasons we give them,'
0:46:30 > 0:46:32and they do get very cross with us.
0:46:32 > 0:46:34They get quite abusive, some of them,
0:46:34 > 0:46:37but it's because they're concerned about their relative,
0:46:37 > 0:46:40and I think I would be inclined to be the same.
0:46:40 > 0:46:44If it was my 80-odd-year-old mum lying on a trolley for six hours,
0:46:44 > 0:46:45I would be annoyed.
0:46:45 > 0:46:48So we've got to be very diplomatic at times,
0:46:48 > 0:46:50and we ply them with cups of tea.
0:46:50 > 0:46:53I always tell people, when they've been here four hours,
0:46:53 > 0:46:56their reward is a cup of tea and a sandwich.
0:46:56 > 0:46:58PHONE RINGS
0:47:00 > 0:47:03Over the years, Mel has seen the types of patients coming to A E
0:47:03 > 0:47:06change dramatically.
0:47:06 > 0:47:09Traditionally Friday, Saturday nights were always bad,
0:47:09 > 0:47:12cos of fights and stabbings,
0:47:12 > 0:47:15and all that sort of thing that we used to get.
0:47:15 > 0:47:19We get a lot more elderly now with multiple medical problems.
0:47:19 > 0:47:21Payday, payday's usually a... Payday's a bad day...
0:47:21 > 0:47:25..is a bad day for us because everyone has money to go out and...
0:47:25 > 0:47:27Get bevvied. ..take substances,
0:47:27 > 0:47:29whether it's alcohol, heroine...
0:47:29 > 0:47:31Cocaine. Erm, cocaine...
0:47:31 > 0:47:33And all those other fancy...
0:47:33 > 0:47:35Crystal meth. Crystal meth. MDMA.
0:47:35 > 0:47:36It's...
0:47:36 > 0:47:40Payday's a bad day. Payday is the day we don't like in A E.
0:47:40 > 0:47:42Still at 16 patients,
0:47:42 > 0:47:45but I think most of them are round in the plaster room
0:47:45 > 0:47:47getting attended to round there,
0:47:47 > 0:47:49and the surgeons are here at last.
0:47:51 > 0:47:53Cough. SHE COUGHS
0:47:53 > 0:47:55OK, and a wee cough again.
0:47:55 > 0:47:57SHE COUGHS
0:47:57 > 0:48:00As the night wears on, the final shift is proving to be
0:48:00 > 0:48:03a relatively quiet one for Mel and the team.
0:48:03 > 0:48:04Yeah, I'll just hand over...
0:48:04 > 0:48:07Sorry, I was just going to say, take, take...
0:48:07 > 0:48:08Use room five, yeah.
0:48:08 > 0:48:10Can you bend the knee for me? Yes.
0:48:23 > 0:48:27Mr Buchan, you are our very last patient,
0:48:27 > 0:48:29and we're all here, with a wee cake,
0:48:29 > 0:48:31for a cup of tea when you get up the stairs.
0:48:33 > 0:48:35I hope you're not diabetic?
0:48:38 > 0:48:42CHEERING
0:48:43 > 0:48:45Bye! Bye-bye!
0:48:48 > 0:48:50CHEERING
0:48:51 > 0:48:52Turn around.
0:48:52 > 0:48:54Cheers, everyone!
0:48:54 > 0:48:56THEY CHEER AND CAMERA CLICKS
0:48:58 > 0:49:00WOMAN LAUGHS
0:49:05 > 0:49:06Well, that's it done.
0:49:06 > 0:49:08CHEERING
0:49:10 > 0:49:12Time to go home.
0:49:14 > 0:49:15Oh...
0:49:17 > 0:49:18How many years?
0:49:18 > 0:49:2043 years. Oh, my word.
0:49:30 > 0:49:33BBC NEWS THEME PLAYS
0:49:39 > 0:49:41Tonight on Reporting Scotland,
0:49:41 > 0:49:45claims of chaos at the country's new "super hospital".
0:49:45 > 0:49:50Just weeks after opening, people wait hours to be admitted to A E
0:49:50 > 0:49:52at the new Southern General in Glasgow.
0:49:55 > 0:49:59Just three weeks after opening, things are not going to plan.
0:49:59 > 0:50:02The pressure of staffing both the old and new hospitals
0:50:02 > 0:50:04is putting a huge strain on staff.
0:50:06 > 0:50:07The aim to reduce waiting times,
0:50:07 > 0:50:11by separating patients referred by GPs from those coming to A E,
0:50:11 > 0:50:14isn't working.
0:50:14 > 0:50:17Hundreds of people are waiting well over the four hour target -
0:50:17 > 0:50:19some as long as eight hours.
0:50:19 > 0:50:22We had some real problems in the first week or so, in making sure
0:50:22 > 0:50:26that patients who'd been referred by their GP were seen quickly enough.
0:50:26 > 0:50:28There are always peaks and troughs in the demand for
0:50:28 > 0:50:30emergency admissions and we have to be able to cope with that.
0:50:30 > 0:50:33Up until now we've been trying to provide services
0:50:33 > 0:50:34on two or three sites...
0:50:34 > 0:50:37We've been trying to run as best we can on new models of care,
0:50:37 > 0:50:40but really, we haven't had enough resources to do that.
0:50:40 > 0:50:43Reports of the problems go right to the top.
0:50:43 > 0:50:45Is the Minister comfortable with
0:50:45 > 0:50:47the reports in the press today of mayhem
0:50:47 > 0:50:51at the Southern General Hospital Accident and Emergency Unit?
0:50:58 > 0:51:02While NHS managers work out how to solve the problem,
0:51:02 > 0:51:06Mel's heading in for her very first night shift at the new hospital.
0:51:06 > 0:51:10I've only seen bits and pieces in the papers,
0:51:10 > 0:51:14and I'm not really surprised,
0:51:14 > 0:51:17because I don't think...
0:51:17 > 0:51:20other than the people that actually worked in the Victoria,
0:51:20 > 0:51:23how busy it was, what a busy place it was,
0:51:23 > 0:51:26and the huge volume of patients we saw there
0:51:26 > 0:51:33in such a small department.
0:51:33 > 0:51:36to the people that worked in the Southern General,
0:51:36 > 0:51:39of the numbers coming in.
0:51:39 > 0:51:41We were seeing 200-and-odd some days at the Vic,
0:51:41 > 0:51:46in a place that's probably half the size of this one.
0:51:46 > 0:51:50Mel began work at the Victoria in 1972,
0:51:50 > 0:51:52so tonight marks a huge change for her.
0:51:53 > 0:51:55Very mixed feelings really.
0:51:55 > 0:51:57A wee bit nervous about it,
0:51:57 > 0:52:00but I know how to do the job and look after people,
0:52:00 > 0:52:03and that's what it's all about, really, isn't it?
0:52:03 > 0:52:04So we'll see...
0:52:04 > 0:52:08We'll see what happens tonight.
0:52:08 > 0:52:10I hope they don't make me nurse in charge, though,
0:52:10 > 0:52:13on my first night, because I think that would be cruel.
0:52:15 > 0:52:16It's not only in the emergency areas
0:52:16 > 0:52:19that the first few weeks have been difficult.
0:52:19 > 0:52:24Settling into the new wards has been hard work for nursing staff.
0:52:24 > 0:52:27So we've got eight admissions today, Rebecca?
0:52:27 > 0:52:29Uh-huh.
0:52:29 > 0:52:33And they're all same-day admissions, so they'll all be coming post-op,
0:52:33 > 0:52:35and I've got one bed, with four going home -
0:52:35 > 0:52:37possibly four going home.
0:52:37 > 0:52:39Possibly post-op? Post-op, yeah.
0:52:39 > 0:52:43In their new ward, Susan and her team have been putting in long hours.
0:52:43 > 0:52:46We were the first people in, and it was really, really difficult.
0:52:46 > 0:52:48Problems with the lighting system, you know, like,
0:52:48 > 0:52:51maybe the lights wouldn't go off, which became a problem.
0:52:51 > 0:52:53We didn't realise until night-time, when night fell,
0:52:53 > 0:52:55and the patients wanted to get to sleep,
0:52:55 > 0:52:57and we couldn't turn the lights off.
0:52:57 > 0:52:59Erm, and problems with the plumbing,
0:52:59 > 0:53:02and just, like, minor snagging things which,
0:53:02 > 0:53:04in the big scheme of things, they're just minor snagging,
0:53:04 > 0:53:07but if you're a patient, you know, lying in a bed,
0:53:07 > 0:53:09wanting to go to sleep, or, you know, looking...
0:53:09 > 0:53:12If you're a nurse searching for something that, you know...
0:53:12 > 0:53:16The delivery system fell down in the first few day.
0:53:16 > 0:53:19That was really difficult.
0:53:19 > 0:53:21There's lots of change, you know -
0:53:21 > 0:53:23the size of the ward, the single rooms, you know, erm...
0:53:23 > 0:53:28Just making sure that we're still providing the same level of care.
0:53:28 > 0:53:30During the day, the physios do have the patients up and about,
0:53:30 > 0:53:33but it's just, if you look down the ward, you know,
0:53:33 > 0:53:35you normally see lots of patients wandering around and...
0:53:35 > 0:53:37At first, you know, it was a bit of a shock to us.
0:53:37 > 0:53:39It didn't seem like a ward,
0:53:39 > 0:53:42so we're trying to encourage the patients to get out and walk about.
0:53:42 > 0:53:44MACHINE CHIMES We're doing the exact same job,
0:53:44 > 0:53:46you know? Nothing's changed. it's still a surgical ward,
0:53:46 > 0:53:48We've still got, you know...
0:53:48 > 0:53:50You know, we're still pushed for beds.
0:53:50 > 0:53:53We're still trying to get, you know, all our electives in.
0:53:53 > 0:53:57We've still got the same pressures that we had previously.
0:54:05 > 0:54:08Got my watch, got everything I need, I hope...
0:54:08 > 0:54:11and go and get started.
0:54:11 > 0:54:13Exciting.
0:54:15 > 0:54:18Oh, I'm not used to modern stuff.
0:54:18 > 0:54:22In spite of her hopes, Mel has been made nurse in charge.
0:54:22 > 0:54:25I can't believe this! OK, that's fine.
0:54:25 > 0:54:28Right, who's on night shift, cos I don't know who everyone is?
0:54:28 > 0:54:32Who... As well as getting to grips with a new department,
0:54:32 > 0:54:35she'll have to learn the names of new colleagues.
0:54:35 > 0:54:37Would you mind doing resus with...?
0:54:37 > 0:54:39Pauline, would you mind?
0:54:39 > 0:54:41My wee friend, do you want to go with Pauline as well?
0:54:41 > 0:54:43Where am I going? Resus.
0:54:43 > 0:54:44Resus, all right.
0:54:44 > 0:54:45So is three of them enough
0:54:45 > 0:54:48there at the moment? For just now, yeah, absolutely.
0:54:48 > 0:54:50Right, who wants to be second triage nurse?
0:54:50 > 0:54:51I'm day shift.
0:54:51 > 0:54:54I don't know who does triage. I'll do second triage. Is that OK?
0:54:54 > 0:54:57Yeah. Right, and I'll try and remember everyone's names.
0:54:57 > 0:55:00It just seems an awful lot of folk. Alannah...
0:55:00 > 0:55:04And that's our first phone call coming for you. PHONE RINGS
0:55:04 > 0:55:06Hello, Glasgow South, how can I help?
0:55:06 > 0:55:09I think I'll start by having a look round the patients and seeing...
0:55:09 > 0:55:12Do you know where everything is?
0:55:12 > 0:55:13It'll take me a while to remember,
0:55:13 > 0:55:15but if I have a look in each cubicle,
0:55:15 > 0:55:18'and get the lay of the land with the spaces...'
0:55:18 > 0:55:19Hi, there. Hi, I'm Mel.
0:55:19 > 0:55:21I'm the nurse in charge tonight.
0:55:21 > 0:55:23I'm just having a wee wander round to see...
0:55:23 > 0:55:25'It looks like it's all going to work very similar.'
0:55:25 > 0:55:29It's just on a much bigger scale and I'm a wee bit confused just now.
0:55:30 > 0:55:34By the morning, in 12 more hours, I'll know what I'm doing, I hope.
0:55:34 > 0:55:36So...
0:55:37 > 0:55:39It's my very first shift in this hospital.
0:55:39 > 0:55:41Well done.
0:55:41 > 0:55:42We're on the case, OK?
0:55:42 > 0:55:44OK. And we'll get you sorted out as soon as we can.
0:55:44 > 0:55:46All right. And don't believe all you read in the papers...
0:55:46 > 0:55:48Don't worry about that. OK.
0:55:48 > 0:55:50Thanks very much. Bye-bye, now. Bye-bye.
0:55:50 > 0:55:53Yeah, everybody seems to be really friendly, don't they?
0:55:53 > 0:55:57So I'm hopeful. I think we'll be a good team.
0:55:57 > 0:56:00I'm feeling very... optimistic, shall we say?
0:56:00 > 0:56:02That's the doctor in to see you.
0:56:02 > 0:56:04It may well be a brand-new hospital,
0:56:04 > 0:56:08but the workload is all too familiar for consultant Kevin Thomson.
0:56:08 > 0:56:12The police have just arrived with a homeless man who has self-harmed.
0:56:12 > 0:56:15Mental health is part of the daily workload in A E.
0:56:15 > 0:56:17'In the ideal world, we'd like to admit them to hospital.
0:56:17 > 0:56:19'We'd like to give them a bed,
0:56:19 > 0:56:22'We'd like to get all their social, sort of, problems sorted out,
0:56:22 > 0:56:25'but realistically, that's just not achievable.'
0:56:25 > 0:56:29And there is sometimes a bit of an educated gamble involved,
0:56:29 > 0:56:30in the way that the... the life that
0:56:30 > 0:56:32the emergency physician leads.
0:56:32 > 0:56:35I can give him a psychiatric assessment,
0:56:35 > 0:56:36and I don't think he's at risk.
0:56:36 > 0:56:39'My take was that he wasn't suicidal.
0:56:39 > 0:56:42'He was looking for somewhere to stay tonight,'
0:56:42 > 0:56:43so sometimes you just have to patch them up
0:56:43 > 0:56:45and send them out.
0:56:45 > 0:56:47Well, if she's got a headache with that,
0:56:47 > 0:56:48then she gets admitted. OK, fine.
0:56:48 > 0:56:52For Kevin, the new admissions system is beginning to have an impact.
0:56:52 > 0:56:55The big thing that we are being involved in is
0:56:55 > 0:56:59that we are starting to see purely emergency patients again.
0:56:59 > 0:57:04We have lost the necessity to see and treat the GP referrals,
0:57:04 > 0:57:07and that takes a large workload off our department.
0:57:07 > 0:57:09'It takes a large work load off the...
0:57:09 > 0:57:11'particularly the nursing staff.'
0:57:11 > 0:57:13So I think, for the first time in a long time,
0:57:13 > 0:57:16we are an emergency department, 100%, which is good.
0:57:16 > 0:57:18It's good for everybody.
0:57:18 > 0:57:21'We don't seem to be having a problem in Accident and Emergency
0:57:21 > 0:57:23'with timing.'
0:57:23 > 0:57:25That's not been too bad here.
0:57:25 > 0:57:29I think the problems will be further along in the ward,
0:57:29 > 0:57:31when we're running short of beds,
0:57:31 > 0:57:33so I don't quite know what's going to happen then,
0:57:33 > 0:57:36if then people will back up here,
0:57:36 > 0:57:37but we'll wait and see.
0:57:37 > 0:57:40Hopefully not.
0:57:40 > 0:57:42A E may be beginning to function well
0:57:42 > 0:57:45but for waiting times to improve... Hello, Emergency Department.
0:57:45 > 0:57:48..there has to be space for patients to be admitted to the wards upstairs.
0:57:48 > 0:57:50There's going to be teething problems.
0:57:50 > 0:57:51The department's going to evolve,
0:57:51 > 0:57:54and certainly evolve more as the third department joins us.
0:57:54 > 0:57:56The patients are still going to come through that door.
0:57:56 > 0:57:58They're never going to stop doing that.
0:57:58 > 0:58:00We are always going to be able to see them
0:58:00 > 0:58:02but we need that door to be open at all times.
0:58:02 > 0:58:04We need beds to be available.
0:58:04 > 0:58:07That's going to be the big problem in this hospital.
0:58:13 > 0:58:17Next time - Yorkhill Children's Hospital is on the move.
0:58:17 > 0:58:19Are you going to the new hospital?
0:58:19 > 0:58:20Right, say bye!
0:58:20 > 0:58:22Blow kisses.
0:58:22 > 0:58:24And although some departments in the new hospital
0:58:24 > 0:58:26have settled in well,
0:58:26 > 0:58:28as the last adult hospital moves in,
0:58:28 > 0:58:32the shortage of beds makes waiting times in the new A E
0:58:32 > 0:58:33the worst in Scotland.