THE BIG PICTURE

From conference centre to hospitalTom Moberly

The BMJ

[Image: Andrew Parsons /10 Downing Street/Anadolu Agency /Getty Images]

Teams begin work setting up the Nightingale Hospital Londonat the Excel conference centre in east London on 27 March2020.

Military personnel were involved in the planning stages of theproject to establish the hospital and are continuing to supportNHS England by providing infrastructure, logistics, and projectmanagement advice. The hospital has been established toprovide support for thousands of patients with covid-19, andthe conference centre has been refitted to take hundreds of bedswith oxygen and ventilators.Two further NHS Nightingale hospitals will open in Birminghamand Manchester. A hospital based at the National ExhibitionCentre in Birmingham will start with up to 500 beds and willbe equipped to increase capacity to up to 2000 beds if needed.A hospital based at the Manchester Central Complex willprovide up to 500 beds but could expand further to 1000 bedsfor coronavirus patients across northwest England.In New York, Central Park is the location for one of severaltemporary hospitals being erected to support hospitals treatingcovid-19 patients in the US. The hospital has been set up by theMt Sinai hospital system with 68 beds.

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BMJ 2020;368:m1298 doi: 10.1136/bmj.m1298 (Published 31 March 2020) Page 1 of 1

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