St John's Hospital, Livingston
| St John's Hospital | |
|---|---|
| NHS Lothian | |
| File:Stjohnshospital-livingstonscotland.jpg | |
| Geography | |
| Location | Livingston, West Lothian, Scotland, United Kingdom |
| Organisation | |
| Care system | NHS Lothian |
| Hospital type | General Hospital and A&E |
| Affiliated university | University of Edinburgh Medical School |
| Services | |
| Emergency department | Yes Accident & Emergency |
| Beds | 550 [1] |
| History | |
| Founded | 1989 |
| Links | |
| Website | NHS Lothian Website |
| Lists | Hospitals in Scotland |
St John's Hospital is the main general hospital in Livingston, West Lothian, Scotland. Located in the Howden area of the town, it serves Livingston, west Edinburgh, and the wider West Lothian region.[1] St John's is one of three hospitals run by NHS Lothian which have accident and emergency services. St John's has special status as a teaching hospital for the University of Edinburgh Medical School.[2]
Contents
History
Bangour General Hospital, near Dechmont to the north of Livingston, was the main hospital in the West Lothian area from 1939. Bangour had been built as an annexe of the village hospital, which had specialised in psychiatry. The Livingston Development Corporation(LDC), which oversaw the development of the new town of Livingston from 1962, had planned to move the general hospital to Livingston from around 1974. The new hospital was opened in 1989, by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. Bangour General Hospital was closed in the early 1990s.[3]
Facilities
Hospital Services
The current facilities at St John's include a recently renovated accident and emergency ward, and a large maternity unit, where around 2,500 babies are born annually.[2] The radiology department uses a trust-wide PACS system, complete with 2 digital screening rooms, spiral CT, 4 ultrasound machines and a gamma camera.[1] St John's contains many specialist services for south east Scotland, including oral and maxillofacial, burns and plastic surgery units.[2][4] The hospital is being promoted as the main regional centre for elective surgery, and as a centre for minimally invasive surgery. This centre, supported by University of Edinburgh professors, will provide Ear, Nose and Throat (ENT) surgery, orthopaedic surgery, and urology.[4] The ENT in patient facility formerly based in Edinburgh has been relocated and amalgamated with the ENT services already located at St John's and serving West lothian, with the intention of merging it with the existing head and neck unit, to form another regional centre.[2] The improvements will see 4,500 patients per year being treated at St Johns.[4] Notably there are no inpatient general surgery or trauma and orthopaedic services at St John's.
Hospital Radio
Radio Grapevine is the hospital radio station, which has been broadcasting to the main buildings of the hospital since 1991. They are a recognised Scottish registered charity. Patients, staff, family and friends can listen to this Award Winning station dedicated to patient entertainment online via the Radio Grapevine website. They were the first Scottish hospital radio service to broadcast online. Patients can enjoy a dedicated request programme 7 nights a week through their bedside units, day rooms or online. [5]
Howden Health Centre
Howden Health Centre, is located within the hospital grounds, but predates the hospital by several years. It is a community health centre, and provides a range of health services for the local population. As well as accommodating a large NHS medical practice,[6] there is a Family Planning clinic, Genitourinary Medicine clinic, Community Pharmacy, District Nursing team, and Health Visitor team based in the building.
Transportation
St John's Hospital is very well linked by public transport in the area, with most buses within Livingston calling at St John's at some point in their route. It has links with Uphall, Broxburn, all parts of Livingston, Pumpherston, Mid Calder, East Calder, Edinburgh, Edinburgh Airport, Edinburgh Royal Infirmary, Ocean Terminal, Linlithgow, Bathgate and more.
It is 1.5 miles from Livingston North train station, which provides links to Bathgate, Edinburgh, Airdrie, and Glasgow via the recently reopened Airdrie-Bathgate line.
It has a large car park which along with all NHS-run hospitals in Scotland had its parking charges abolished on 31 December 2008.
References
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- ↑ Howden Medical Group
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