MILLIONS of pounds are to be invested in Livingston's St John's Hospital to create a new surgical centre.
Dental services will also be created thanks to a £500,000 injection in the latest plans to be unveiled for the hospital.
The £8.2 million short stay centre will be for elective surgery for patients from the whole of the Lothians.
It is thought
the new service will cut waiting times and reduce cancellations, as well as boost operating theatre efficiency.
Local health chiefs also hope it will silence critics in West Lothian who say the NHS is whittling down services at the Livingston hospital and moving them into Edinburgh.
Members of protest group Stop the Downgrade said they still hoped for more positive announcements in the future.
Simon MacKenzie, NHS Lothian's associate medical director, said: "This new centre will confirm St John's as one of our three essential acute hospitals and will play a key role in reducing waiting times to ensure patients receive the best care possible."
Once up and running, an extra 3000 patients a year will either be primed for surgery or undergo straightforward operations in fields which St John's specialises in, like head and neck, burns, plastic surgery or children's medicine.
It should be open by May 2010 and is considered to be the second phase of development at St John's.
Meanwhile, it has also been revealed that some training programmes in general surgery will take place at St John's.
Posts in obstetrics and gynaecology have been granted approval and will see education links with the Edinburgh Royal Infirmary strengthened.
Theresa Douglas, chairwoman of the Community Health and Care Partnership, added: "We are delighted with this new investment which is great news not only for St John's, but for patients in West Lothian and the rest of Lothian."
Health chiefs have also unveiled plans for the £500,000 improvements to St John's dental services.
The investment will see five new dentists chairs who will deal in specialist cases.
A chunk of the cash has also been earmarked for training purposes, while West Lothian will now have its own orthodontic services. Weekend emergency cover will also be provided.
Cllr Gordon Beurskens, who was elected as part of the Action to Save St John's campaign, said: "We welcome any commitment to the expansion of services or the sustaining of existing ones. But we were elected on the return of emergency surgery and elective orthopaedics, and feel more could be done by the (health) board."
The full article contains 427 words and appears in Edinburgh Evening News newspaper.
