CONSULTANTS and health chiefs swapped surgeries for steel toecaps and hard-hats to tour the building site that will soon become a multi-million pound hospital.

A ‘topping out’ ceremony on Thursday afternoon saw builders and special guests mark the completion of construction on the exterior of the Tees Valley Hospital.

Many of those who will work at the hospital upon its completion attended the roof top ceremony, which followed a tour of the facility.

Nestled in the grounds of the recently redeveloped Acklam Hall, the two-storey hospital will host staff and services from the existing Tees Valley Treatment Centre, currently based in Middlesbrough’s town centre.

It is hoped that the private medical centre, which offers state of the art equipment and facilities, will expand on the services provided there and attract other consultants and medical practitioners when it opens at the end of the year.

The £4.2m facility forms part of developers Acklam Hall Limited’s plan to create a “bespoke patient centred health village” at the site, which also boasts Middlesbrough’s only grade one listed building.

Expected to generate around 50 new jobs, the 19-bedroom hospital will include overnight inpatient beds, an endoscopy suite, three laminar flow theatres and an outpatient department with facilities for minor procedures, diagnostic imaging and a physiotherapy suite.

Thursday’s event saw visitors enjoy a preview of their future working environment, with those present able to witness the work underway and the construction already completed.

General manager Donna Thornton said excitement over the hospital’s on-going development was palpable.

Ms Thornton said the construction work was going according to schedule, with the hospital expected to open as anticipated in December this year.

In relation to the topping out ceremony, she added: “In builders’ terms, the ceremony comes when the last brick or beam is put into place and it’s very exciting to be able to mark this special occasion.

“The next few months will fly by and by December I’m quite sure we’ll have a building that we love.

“The energy and enthusiasm is palpable and that will get higher and higher, there is such excitement and that is great to witness.”

The hospital, operated by Ramsay Health Care, represents the latest phase of the redevelopment of the historic Acklam Hall and its immediate surroundings.

Developers Acklam Hall Ltd have so far demolished the former college buildings that stood on the site, restored the Grade I listed hall, revamped its grounds and constructed housing in close vicinity to it.

The sale of the hall and the redevelopment plans were strongly opposed but approved by Middlesbrough councillors, with Acklam Hall Ltd saying their work would help to sustain the future of the hall and its grounds.