NHS Grampian has apologised to patients after revealing dozens of operations will be postponed in the coming days.
The health board said the disruption was due to both of its central decontamination units (CDUs), which sterilise and prepare surgical equipment, being unable to function.
The CDU at Woodend Hospital in Aberdeen is currently unable to operate due to damage caused to electrical systems by a lightning strike.
Meanwhile the CDU at the Foresterhill site is also out of use after a failure in its specialist ventilation system.
Hospital bosses have assured the public that emergency surgeries and C-sections will continue, along with operations involving patients judged to have the highest clinical priority, despite the disruption.
NHS Grampian has implemented contingency plans and is using external CDU capacity, which has substantially increased turnaround times for instruments.
It is expected around 20 operations due to be performed at the health board’s Aberdeen hospitals on Wednesday will be postponed.
It is estimated around 50 procedures will still be completed at the facilities.
Divisional general manager Cameron Matthew said: “Unfortunately, due to a fault with our main central decontamination unit, we will have to postpone a number of surgeries, due to take place at Aberdeen Royal Infirmary, Royal Aberdeen Children’s Hospital and Woodend Hospital in the coming days.
“We would reassure everyone that during this period we will still be providing emergency and urgent surgery – including major trauma cases and C-sections.
“The postponements are regrettable, and I would apologise to everyone who will be affected by this.
“We will individually contact patients affected as soon as possible – if you do not hear from us, it is because your operation is still due to go ahead.
“We are currently looking at every case scheduled to take place in the coming days and prioritising patients based on clinical need.
“We understand that waits for most operations are already longer than we would like, and we realise that there is a very real impact on the quality of life to many of the people waiting for procedures.
“If your procedure is postponed, please be assured that we will reschedule your surgery at the earliest possible opportunity, once the situation has been resolved.”
Gavin Payne, general manager for facilities and estates at NHS Grampian, added: “We are currently utilising contingency plans and using other sites, out with Grampian, to carry out the work of the CDU – but this is causing extended turnaround times for our surgical instruments which impacts the number of operations we can undertake.”
Work is currently under way to repair both CDUs. Once these works are finished, a series of environmental tests will need to be conducted to ensure the space is safe to return to use.
