by business editor Trevor Sturgess

Construction of an £80m private hospital that is set to create 400 jobs is about to start.

The final go-ahead for the Kent Institute of Medicine and Surgery (KIMS) in Maidstone was given after a £34m funding deal with Clydesdale Bank covering initial build and operating costs.

Additional funding for the scheme is provided by corporate and private investors, including around 100 clinicians who will part-own and run the hospital.

KIMS is being built on a seven acre site at Newnham Court, close to the M20. When it opens, probably in early 2014, it will provide the only Cardiothoracic and Neurosurgery tertiary care beds in Kent.

The new hospital will provide private medical care, plus support for the NHS by providing treatments to Kent residents for which they currently have to travel to London hospitals.

It will provide care across multiple disciplines, including gynaecology, orthopaedics and oncology. Up to a quarter of its capacity will be available for NHS treatments.
he hospital will utilise the services of around 200 clinicians, including some leading names across a number of medical disciplines, and will also create around 400 new jobs at the site.

Stuart Trussler, corporate banking director at Clydesdale Bank, managed the deal which involves the bank having naming rights to the hospital’s education building for 15 years.
He said: "This agreement is fantastic news for Kent. We are very pleased to have been part of this process; supporting KIMS and bringing a much needed facility to life - improving healthcare and patient outcomes in Kent."

Dr. Tony Hammond, chairman of the KIMS Medical Advisory Committee, added: "KIMS will bring much needed tertiary care beds to Kent, cutting out thousands of hours of travel for patients, and bringing the best clinicians to their doorsteps. We would like to thank Clydesdale Bank for their help and support, without their understanding and ability to share our vision we would not be here now."