The Kames UK Real Assets team has worked with the NHS and The British Army to deliver a recovery centre for patients in convalescence from Covid-19 hospitalisation in just 14 days.
Many Covid-19 patients that have been in ICU and on ventilators find their path to recovery includes longer than anticipated medical care. Patients are dismissed from an NHS hospital, and then need to go into care homes due to secondary health issues from battling the virus.
As the country is dealing with a shortage of after-hospital care facilities geared towards handling such patients, Kames’ UK Real Assets team have been able to step in and assist.
One of the social care properties that Kames Target Healthcare Property Fund (KTHP) owns in Essex was in the midst of finalising a lease when the coronavirus pandemic struck and stalled negotiations.
The NHS reached out to its long-term contacts in the Kames UK Real Assets team to see if this facility could be leased to them as a care centre for coronavirus patients. As a result, a transaction that usually takes two years took two weeks to be completed.
Anne Copeland, co-manager of the Kames Target Property Fund says: “We were delighted to be able to step in and use our experience in this area to get this vital project done.
“The Kames Target Healthcare Property Fund team assisted with facilities teams, regulatory approval and legal documentation, and The British Army was called in to assist in preparing the building to house post-ICU coronavirus patients.
“The centre now houses 64 en suite rooms and is completely Covid-19 compliant. This was a task that required our teams to work tirelessly through the Easter holidays in a highly condensed timeline, but we were more than happy to help on this vital project.”
The Kames Target Healthcare Property Fund has agreed that an income is payable after an initial rent-free period of three months, with the NHS covering all running costs.
Copeland adds: “The team hopes that this successful pioneering collaboration will pave the way forward for more such deals as we all work together to combat the pandemic.”
