Two new state-of-the-art theatres have opened at Gloucestershire Royal Hospital.

Theatre four has been fully refurbished and extended to include an Interventional Radiology (IR) theatre, which will enable the Vascular team to perform procedures using live camera images to guide the procedure. This means the surgeon will no longer have to make a large, open cut and instead can perform surgery via a small ‘keyhole’, which means the patient heals and recovers more quickly. It will also reduce the risk to the patient, the amount of time the person needs to stay in the hospital and their recovery time.

Theatre four will also benefit from a new canopy, which means an ultra-clean environment will be created by this ventilation system, which is designed to deliver up to 500 air changes an hour, which is aimed at protecting the wound site from Surgical Site Infections.

Theatre three will benefit from the same new canopy. Theatre three will be used more generally across a number of specialities including, but not exclusive to Upper Gastrointestinal, Colorectal, Urology, Breast Cancer and Maxillofacial. Both of these theatres are fully lead-lined making it suitable for X-ray cases to be undertaken in a safe and protected setting.