A HOSPITAL that was found to have RAAC concrete planks has scaled its response back as it is close to re-opening the hospital fully.

Withybush Hospital was put into partial closure back in August, after Hywel Dda University Health Board declared an internal major incident following the discovery of the faulty Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete planks in a number of areas across the hospital site.

The incident was declared on August 15 and over the months that followed, parts of the hospital were closed whilst work was carried out and some patients were moved to other hospitals.

Towards the end of 2023, the health board announced that parts of the hospital had been re-opened, with the final wards due to be opened later this spring.

By declaring today – Friday, January 19 – that the internal major incident has come to an end, the health board has confirmed that it has addressed the immediate health and safety issues and the risks that RAAC posed.

Andrew Carruthers, the health board’s director of operations, said: “This is good news, but it is important to note that some services continue to be displaced and provided from alternative venues, which presents ongoing operational challenges.

“Repair work will continue throughout this year. There is also an ongoing programme of regular survey work to monitor the condition of the RAAC, which will cause some disruption from time to time.

“I would also like to thank patients, visitors and members of the public for their patience, support and understanding during what has been a very challenging time for us and our patients.

“We are grateful to our patients and staff, for their continued support, and for understanding when we have needed to temporarily move services to alternative locations. The collective hard work of staff and hospital management, with support from our local authority partners and Welsh Government, has made it possible for us to make repairs and to reach this point of de-escalation.

“We look forward to continuing to work together to manage the repair and recommissioning of the affected wards. We expect to have wards back in use by the end of March 2024, with work to repair the kitchens and outpatient areas completed later this year.”

The health board has been advising patients if their services or planned appointment have been moved to other locations ahead of time.