The inpatient ward at a Leicestershire hospital is to be closed for five weeks so essential repairs can be carried out.
The floor of the ward corridor at Melton Mowbray Hospital has become damaged through wear and tear and needs replacing.
NHS bosses say they have looked at several ways of carrying out the work without moving patients out but the best solution could still result in dust escaping into treatment areas.
So the 17-bed ward at the Thorpe Road hospital will be temporarily shut and replacement beds opened at other hospitals around the county.
NHS Property Services and Leicestershire Partnership NHS Trust have agreed that from mid-August until mid-September, for the five week duration of the works, staff and patients will not be on the ward while the work is carried out.
When will it close?
The work will begin on August 15.
It is intended for it to be complete well before the start of usual winter pressures on bed capacity.
Other NHS services at Melton will continue as normal throughout this period — including the birthing centre, outpatient clinics, and the urgent care centre.
What's happening at Leicester's Hospitals
In the run-up to the work, the number of beds will be reduced on the ward as patients are discharged and extra beds opened at community hospitals in Loughborough, Hinckley and at the Evington Centre in Leicester to maintain bed capacity.
Ward manager Lisa Farmer said: “We apologise to all patients, carers and visitors and staff who are affected by this temporary closure and look forward to it reopening in September.”
It will cost £37,000 to carry out the work.
