LOST HOSPITALS OF LONDON

 

 

Queen Elizabeth Military Hospital

Stadium Road, Woolwich, SE18 4QH

Medical dates:

Medical character:

1977 - 1995

Military

The Queen Elizabeth Military Hospital (QEMH) opened in 1977, having taken five years to build.  Located in Stadium Road, it was built on land formerly occupied by the Shrapnel Barracks, a Veterinary Hospital and stables for the army horses. It  was named after Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother, who opened it officially in 1978 (she had also laid the foundation stone in 1972).  

The £16m Hospital replaced the Queen Alexandra Military Hospital (QAMH) at Millbank and the nearby Royal Herbert Hospital on Shooters Hill.  (The official opening had been delayed until all the patients from these Hospitals had been transferred over.)

The Nurses' Home was completed much later and the Queen Alexandra Royal Army Nursing Corps (QARANC) was accommodated in the Royal Artillery buildings across Woolwich Common.

A large hospital with 456 beds in 16 wards, it cared for servicemen and their families, as well as local civilians, whose nearest hospital otherwise was Greenwich District Hospital.  The Hospital also treated Chelsea Pensioners and Far East Prisoner of War (FEPOW) survivors.  While it had no Accident and Emergency Department, there were several operating theatres and a large Intensive Care Unit, a Burns Unit and medical, psychiatric, oncology and rehabilitation wards.

The paediatric department and wards closed in the 1980s, and children were then referred to the Cambridge Military Hospital in Aldershot.

The Hospital closed in 1995 as part of the government's defence cuts.  The Union flag was lowered, the Last Post sounded, and the keys to the Hospital were ceremoniously handed over by the Commanding Officer of the QEMH to the Chief Executive of the Greenwich Healthcare Trust.

Present status (January 2008)

It re-opened in March 2001 as the Queen Elizabeth Hospital, with 521 beds, under the management of the Queen Elizabeth Hospital NHS Trust. Queen Elizabeth II officially opened the Hospital on 11th December 2001.

In 2006 it was largely rebuilt and extended under the government's Private Finance Initiative (PFI) scheme.  Some of the original features, such as the main entrance, remain.


UPDATE:  January 2016

In April 2009 the Queen Elizabeth Hospital NHS Trust merged with the Queen Mary's Sidcup NHS Trust and the Bromley Hospitals NHS Trust to form the South London Healthcare NHS Trust.

In 2012, as a result of haemorrhaging £1m a week due to its PFI contract over the rebuilding of the Hospital,  the Trust was placed in 'special measures' - the first NHS Trust to have an independent administrator appointed.  The Trust was subsequently disbanded.

On 1st October 2013 the Hospital merged with the Lewisham Healthcare NHS Trust, which was renamed the Lewisham and Greenwich NHS Trust.

N.B. Photographs obtained in December 2008

Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Woolwich

The main entrance to the Hospital, still looking rather militaristic.

Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Woolwich

The southern side of the Hospital site.

Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Woolwich

Presumably the tall block is part of the former Military Hospital.

Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Woolwich

The  car park to the north of the Hospital is built on the site of the former Veterinary Hospital.

 

NB Photographs obtained in October 2012

Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Woolwich

The main driveway entrance is now softened somewhat by trees.

Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Woolwich

The main entrance.

Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Woolwich

Ward blocks (above and below).

Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Woolwich

 

Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Woolwich

Commemorative plaques have been mounted on large rocks by the entrance.

Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Woolwich

The left-hand plaque commemorates the opening of the Queen Elizabeth Military Hospital on 1st November 1978 by Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother.

Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Woolwich

The right hand plaque commemorates the opening of the Hospital on 11th December 2001 by the Queen.

 

Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Woolwich

The mental unit at the south side of the site (above and below).

Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Woolwich

 

Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Woolwich

The site plan in 2012.

 

NB Photographs obtained in March 2014

Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Woolwich

The entrance on Charlton Park Lane (above and below).

Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Woolwich

References (Accessed 21st January 2016)

Smith M, Sakula A 1994 Hospital Names. London, RSM Press.

http://853blog.com
http://hansard.millbanksystems.com
http://stock.jasonhawkes.com
https://tgc6266.wordpress.com
www.20thcenturylondon.org.uk
www.electives.net
www.flickr.com
www.forces-war-records.co.uk
www.lewishamandgreenwich.nhs.uk
www.publications.parliament.uk
www.qaranc.co.uk
www.queenelizabeth.nhs.uk
www.telegraph.co.uk
www.whatdotheyknow.com

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