| Lancaster Royal Infirmary | |
|---|---|
| University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Foundation Trust | |
| Original building of Royal Lancaster Infirmary | |
| Geography | |
| Location | Lancaster, Lancashire, North West England, United Kingdom |
| Coordinates | 54°02′33″N2°48′01″W / 54.0425°N 2.8003°W |
| Organisation | |
| Care system | Public NHS |
| Type | Teaching |
| Services | |
| Emergency department | Yes Accident & Emergency |
| Beds | 387 [1] |
| History | |
| Opened | 1781 |
| Links | |
| Website | www |
| Lists | Hospitals in the United Kingdom |
The Royal Lancaster Infirmary (RLI) is a hospital in the city of Lancaster, England. [2] [3] It lies to the south of the city centre, between the A6 road and the Lancaster Canal. It is managed by the University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Foundation Trust. [4]
The infirmary has its origins in a dispensary which opened on Castle Hill in 1781 and a fever hospital established in 1815. [5] These two institutions combined in premises in Thurnham Street in 1833. [5]
A larger site on Ashton Road, which had previously been known as the Springfield Estate, [6] was bought for £2,471 in 1888 [7] and, following a donation of nearly £10,000 by James Williamson, a local businessman, [8] the first building of the new hospital, designed by architects Paley and Austin, [9] was opened by the Duke and Duchess of York in 1896. [7] The original building is now Grade II listed. [9] Springfield Hall was retained and used as an overnight nurses' home for the hospital. [6]
A new maternity unit opened in 1979, the pathology building was added in 1994 and the new centenary building opened in 1996. [7]
The Huggett Suite, a unit for treating stroke patients built at a cost of £1 million, opened in spring 2017 [10] and a new therapies outpatient department, built at a cost of £1.2 million, opened in 2018. [11]
An inspection by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) published in February 2017 gave the hospital a good overall rating with caring graded as outstanding but with patient safety requiring improvement. [13]