THE opening date of the new A&E at Watford General Hospital has been thrown into doubt by construction delays.
An original date of October 1 looks likely to slip by at least 10 days because high winds meant a crane was unable to operate.
The glitch has sent jitters through West Herts Hospitals NHS Trust, which is still reeling from the fiasco of centralisi
ng planned surgery in St Albans.
Medical director Graham Ramsay told a trust board meeting: "The slippage in construction is just 10 days.
"We need to slip the opening at least 10 days to get that time back."
But the board's inability to set a new date caused controversy.
Non executive director Stuart Lacey said: "I'm very uncomfortable with something like this not having a date when it will open.
"Having a date is imperative."
Director of delivery Russell Harrison said of the project: "This is massive operationally."
The centralisation of full A&E in Watford will leave Hemel Hempstead with a minor injuries unit.
The move follows a similar process with planned surgery, which was shifted to St Albans but led to a massive increase in cancelled operations.
Chief executive Jan Filochowski said: "I think we can cope with this and make a sensible revised decision.
"The important thing is to achieve the change rather than achieve the date.
"My current judgement is that we're broadly on track."
The new A&E is being built out of prefabricated modules which are lifted into position with a crane.
The meeting heard that the trust had a backlog maintenance bill of £60million.
At Watford General Hospital maintenance totalling many millions is needed, partly because the promise of a new health campus has led to essential work being put on hold.
Mr Ramsay said: "We don't think it's worth spending £60million – we need a new hospital."
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