The Princess Royal Bristol Surgical Centre, at Southmead Hospital, is now fully operational and is expected to deliver an additional 6,700 planned procedures each year.
The £49.9 million centre was funded by NHS England to help reduce the elective surgery backlog that built up during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Maria Kane, chief executive of Bristol NHS Group, said: “We are so proud to be offering surgery in this fantastic new facility to benefit local patients.
“This centre significantly increases our surgical capacity so that we can see more of our patients sooner and demonstrates what we can achieve by working together across Bristol and Weston.”
The centre is a joint project between North Bristol NHS Trust (NBT) and University Hospitals Bristol and Weston NHS Foundation Trust, supported by the Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire Integrated Care Board.
Named in honour of Princess Anne, the facility includes four operating theatres, X-ray services, medirooms for pre- and post-surgery care, and a 40-bed inpatient ward.
The first inpatients arrived from the Orthopaedic Ward in the Brunel building on August 22, with the first surgeries taking place on August 26.
Kenneth Middleton was the first patient admitted to Rowan Ward.
Mr Middleton said: “It’s an amazing building, and as I was coming in I felt it didn’t have the feeling of a hospital, it’s a bit like a five-star hotel.
“It appears, from what I have seen, to be very relaxing.”
Anaesthetist Jo Adelaine, who works at NBT, also experienced the centre first as a patient.
Ms Adelaine said: “I did a walkaround when the centre was being built, and it looked pretty impressive then, but it’s a thousand times better now that we are in here.
“The building is beautiful and the kit inside the building is great.
“It is fantastic that X-ray is right by the ward for post-op scanning.
“All the nurses and healthcare assistants here have been amazing, they can’t do enough for you.”
Sister Helen Jones led the move into the new ward.
Ms Jones said: “It’s really exciting to have been involved in the creation of the new Bristol Surgical Centre.
“As a team we have been involved with the design of the rooms, considering what a patient will need before and after recovery and it is lovely to now see it open.”
Professor Tim Whittlestone, chief medical and innovation officer at Bristol NHS Group, said the centre supports the area’s wider healthcare goals.
Professor Whittlestone said: “Improving the care of patients across Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire is a fundamental part of our Joint Clinical Strategy and it is great to see it coming to fruition through the additional capacity created by The Princess Royal Bristol Surgical Centre.”
David Jarrett, chief delivery officer at the Integrated Care Board, said the centre is already making a positive impact.
Mr Jarrett said: “For local people, it means shorter waits for treatment and a much smoother experience of care.
“This is an important step in our ongoing commitment to provide high-quality, sustainable services that improve the health and wellbeing of our communities.”