THE new £3.3 million outpatient department at Royal Hampshire County Hospital in Winchester will open its doors to patients on January 2.

All outpatient clinics as well as Audiology and Ear, Nose and Throat (ENT) clinics will move to the new department on B level of the Burrell wing.

The new department will see about 100,000 patients per year, and replaces the old buildings on Romsey Road.

It offers modern facilities including specially-designed areas to make waiting with children easier for parents and also more enjoyable for the children.

There will also be self check-in kiosks so patients can choose how they confirm their arrival.

A number of other developments have taken place on the RHCH site to make it easier for patients to access the new outpatient department. This includes dedicated disabled parking and a drop-off area in the Queens Road car park which will be renamed Burrell Car Park. A buggy to help patients make their way from the hospital’s multi-storey car park will operate through the site.

The project has been funded by Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, which took over the RHCH in January.

The cost of the project which also includes IT equipment and the move of the department and equipment to the new building.

Donna Green, Hampshire Hospitals chief nurse and chief operating officer, said: “We are so pleased to be able to welcome patients into the new department. At Hampshire Hospitals we care about improving services for patients and their experience with us. As a foundation trust we are able to reinvest in our facilities and services so that we can continue to develop and improve.

“The old outpatients department was past its best, and did not reflect the excellent standards of care we aim to give our patients. The new department is modern and purpose built to the latest standards in many fields including infection control and the specialist soundproofing necessary for the audiology clinics. Both staff and our patient voice group have been involved in the planning and design of the new department, and we know it will provide a better working and caring environment for everyone.”

The four-storey Burrell Wing was built around seven years and has mostly been empty due to the financial problems at the Winchester and Eastleigh Healthcare NHS Trust which was merged into the new foundation trust in 2011.

The Treatment Centre on the top floor was first to move in to the Burrell wing and now the outpatients department will occupy a lower level.

The project was mainly paid for through the sale of land to the University of Winchester for student housing.