‘THE writing is on the wall’ at a new state-of-the-art multi-use facility at Royal Bournemouth Hospital (RBH).

Swift progress has been made on the BEACH building at the site, which forms a part of the £250m transformation of University Hospitals Dorset’s facilities, part of the trust’s ‘vision for the future’.

In an update posted on social media, UHD showed ‘The Royal Bournemouth Hospital’ lettering being added to the side of the building next to Castle Lane East, as the new facilities get closer to completion.

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The building is scheduled to open in 2025 and is named for the services that will be provided at the site.

BEACH stands for Births, Emergency, And Critical care, children’s Health, with the new building spanning 23,000m2, the equivalent of 115 tennis courts.

When operational, it will contain a new purpose-built maternity unit and children’s unit.

The maternity unit will contain a delivery ward of 16 birthing rooms, including seven with pools.

An enhanced emergency department, larger than the existing facilities at Poole and RBH combined, is also included.

This will include dedicated imaging facilities, including x-ray and CT scanning, to allow faster patient diagnosis and care.

Alongside these facilities, a critical care unit with a 30-bed capacity is also in the building.

A ‘topping out’ ceremony was held on the roof of the building in May, with officials at the time confirming that the project was both on time and in budget.

The ceremony was dubbed a ‘momentous occasion’ for healthcare in the area, with health officials and members of parliament among the dignitaries in attendance.

UHD chief executive, Siobhan Harrington said at the ceremony that the hospital will help ‘create a hospital specialising in emergency care at the Royal Bournemouth’.

The building will serve around 145,000 patients a year when the building opens, Under Secretary of State for the Department of Health Lord Nick Markham told the Echo.

Interior work at the building began immediately after the topping out ceremony.

A new purpose-built, five-storey, operating theatre complex at Poole Hospital opened in July.