Published on: 10th November 2016
Renovations are now underway for the county’s first Psychiatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) as the first walls are demolished to make way for the new bespoke 10-bedded male unit.
Lincoln-based building firm R G Carter and Focus Consultants have now commenced work at St George’s in Lincoln and are already making good progress to transform existing unused ward space on the site.
The project team members behind the development were on hand recently to start demolition and are looking forward to being able to provide the new specialist support to help people suffering from serious episodes of mental ill health, enabling them to remain closer to home for treatment.
Tracy Colpitts, Ward Manager for the new Psychiatric Intensive Care Unit said:
It’s great to see work now beginning on site and we are excited to see the final ward when completed next year. In the meantime the project team and I are busy recruiting the 40 staff needed to deliver such a service, which includes a number of nursing and medical posts, in addition to occupational therapy, healthcare support workers, administration and housekeeping roles.
The Trust recently approved the development of a Psychiatric Intensive Care Unit to enhance services in the county and provide a whole new level of specialist treatment currently not available on existing adult mental health wards at the Peter Hodgkinson Centre in Lincoln and Ward 12 at Pilgrim Hospital in Boston.
As work progresses, the project team are also inviting patients, carers and members of the local community to get involved and suggest suitable names for the unit.
Martin Vokes, LPFT Business Manager said:
We are looking for a name that could stand the test of time and are encouraging the public and staff to get involved and suggest suitable names.
If people have suggestions for a name befitting of such an important project they can send these to communicationslpft@lpft.nhs.uk closing dates for ideas is 25 November 2016.
Building works will now continue in full swing for the next eight months, in anticipation of an official launch in the summer of 2017.
Ryan Barnes, Contract Manager for builders R G Carter said the team were excited to start work on site:
As a Lincoln-based building contractor, we pride ourselves on supporting the local communities in which we work. We are delighted to have been appointed to undertake the provision of these essential new psychiatric care facilities.
Focus Consultants senior project manager, Andy White, added:
Focus Consultants is proud to have been appointed to several roles on this development for Lincolnshire Partnership NHS Foundation Trust, the latest in a number of hospital and healthcare projects that the company has been involved with in Lincolnshire and elsewhere. This is an important scheme for the trust and for those who will be cared for at the unit, being the first psychiatric intensive care unit in the county of Lincolnshire, and having designed the development, Focus is pleased that work is now underway on site.
