ESTATE DEVELOPMENT
‘Transformative projects’ ongoing in Birmingham
Birmingham Women’s and Children’s NHS Foundation Trust is embarking on a series of ‘transformative projects’ designed to improve patient care, enhance facilities, and ensure that families receive the best possible support during their healthcare journeys. As Mica Moore, a Business Support manager at the Trust explains, these ‘innovative schemes’ aim to reflect the world-class treatments provided inside the hospitals, while creating welcoming, safe, and sustainable environments for all who visit.
At the heart of these initiatives is a focus on reducing anxiety, improving navigation, and fostering community engagement. The hospitals are working closely with patients, families, and advisory groups, to ensure that every improvement reflects their input and enhances their experience. Sustainability is a key consideration throughout these projects. From using ground source heat pumps, to incorporating green spaces and recycling facilities, Birmingham Women’s and Children’s Hospitals is leading the way in creating environmentally friendly healthcare spaces. These developments represent a new chapter in patient care, where every visitor feels welcomed, supported, and empowered. With these projects underway, the hospitals are set to transform not only their physical spaces, but also the way that care is delivered, ensuring better outcomes and experiences for all.
n Transforming brain surgery: intraoperative MRI comes to the Midlands
This is a ground-breaking project, currently underway at Birmingham Children’s Hospital, which is set to bring cutting-edge, charitably-funded, intraoperative MRI (iMRI) technology to our hospital for the very first time – a development that promises to transform brain tumour and epilepsy surgery for children, and provide life-changing reassurance for families. This state-of-the-art facility will revolutionise the way our neurosurgeons perform brain surgery, improving outcomes for young patients, and easing the emotional burden on their loved ones. The introduction of iMRI will mean that surgeons can assess their progress during an operation in real time, ensuring that they remove as much of a brain tumour as possible in a single procedure. Traditionally, surgeons relied on preoperative scans during surgery, which can sometimes leave residual tumour tissue behind. With iMRI technology, they can conduct an MRI scan during the operation, reducing the likelihood of leaving any tumour remnants that may necessitate further surgeries. This advancement is expected to drastically reduce the need for multiple procedures, shorten operation times, and improve recovery outcomes for our brave young patients.
A ‘profound impact’ for families For families, the impact will be profound. Brain surgery in children is an incredibly distressing experience, and the lingering fear that something might have been missed during surgery can weigh heavily on parents. The introduction of iMRI technology will help ease these fears by giving surgeons the tools to achieve more thorough tumour removal in a single procedure. This will offer families much-needed peace of mind during what is already a difficult and emotional journey. The psychological benefits of this technology are just as significant as the clinical ones. Knowing that their child has had the best possible surgery, with minimal risk of recurrence, will alleviate a great deal of the anxiety and emotional toll faced by families. The iMRI facility represents a step forward not only in medical innovation at our hospital, but also in improving the overall wellbeing of children and their loved ones. Our hospital is the only major paediatric neurosurgical centre in the UK without iMRI technology. However, bringing this revolutionary technology to the Midlands’ leading children’s hospital hasn’t been
Main image: Mica Moore says that the new entrance to Birmingham Children’s Hospital ‘will be more than just a doorway into the hospital; it will be a space that sets the tone for the world-class care and experience patients receive inside’.
Inset: A rendered image of the new entrance at the Children’s Hospital.
April 2025 Health Estate Journal 29
All images are used courtesy of Birmingham Women’s and Children’s NHS Foundation Trust.
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