A NEW £11.3 million eye, ear and mouth unit at Maidstone Hospital has been officially opened by Margaret Bell, the hospital's former director of nursing.

Mrs Bell unveiled a commemorative plaque to mark the opening of the unit following the closure of the old Kent County Ophthalmic and Aural Hospital in Church Street, Maidstone.

The ceremony was attended by hospital managers, staff and patients, including 84-year-old Jesse May, of Greenway, Maidstone. He was a patient at the old ophthalmic hospital back in 1919 when he was just 10 months old and is currently a patient at the new unit.

The new unit opened to patients on April 22, 11 days after the old ophthalmic shut its doors for the last time after 150 years of serving the people of Kent.

Anne Chapman, the outgoing chairman of the Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust, described the new building as a "spacious and well-designed unit."

Miss Chapman said the modern ways of working would hopefully bring better quality of care for patients.

She said: "I have heard from a lot of staff that things are going well and, more importantly, I have heard from patients that they are going well."