Hywel Dda University Health Board Chief Executive Steve Moore has paid tribute to the “remarkable efforts” of their partners, contractors, local communities, staff and volunteers as they undergo the formal handover of a number of temporary field hospitals to help in the fight against COVID-19.

The seven hospitals - which have been converted from council leisure centres, sport and recreational facilities and a school - have been planned and developed at pace with partner organisations across the public and private sectors, to allow he health board to care for patients with the coronavirus across Pembrokeshire, Ceredigion and Carmarthen.

Built in a matter of weeks, with contractors often working in shifts around the clock, among the hospitals is Ysbyty Enfys Carreg Las - based at Bluestone, Pembrokeshire, while the others are:

Ysbyty Enfys Caerfyrddin - based at Carmarthen Leisure Centre.

Ysbyty Enfys Llanelli - based at Llanelli Leisure Centre.

Ysbyty Enfys Selwyn Samuel - based at Selwyn Samuel Centre, Llanelli.

Ysbyty Enfys Scarlets -based at Parc Y Scarlets, Llanelli.

Ysbyty Enfys Aberteifi -based at Cardigan Leisure Centre.

Ysbyty Enfys Aberystwyth - based at Plascrug Leisure Centre and Penweddig Comprehensive School.

These names were chosen for several reasons - to provide consistency with colleagues in the north of Wales; recognition of the geographical location which is practical and also offers the ability to differentiate where there are multiple sites in a single town; acknowledgement of the buildings’ substantive purpose; respect for the culture and language, and importantly, a reflection back to the communities of the symbol they have chosen for this pandemic - the rainbow, a symbol of hope.

All of the sites will be handed over from the respective contractors to the health board by next Monday, April 27.

Steve Moore, chief executive of Hywel Dda, said: “The efforts that our colleagues and partners in local authorities, private businesses including Bluestone and Parc Y Scarlets, contractors and our own staff have made is nothing short of remarkable and I want to personally extend my deepest thanks and gratitude to all for coming together and making this happen in the midst of a very serious global pandemic.

“As a health board we are ready for the challenges ahead and we want our communities to be assured that we have done everything we possibly can to get to this point based on national planning and modelling assumptions.

“What we have witnessed in other countries all over the world is that it is currently very hard to predict how this virus will behave and in Wales we continue to take learning from other parts of the country that have already experienced huge demand on their services, particularly in the south, and will adapt and change our plans accordingly based on the needs of our population.

“We’re never going to know exactly how this pandemic will develop locally until we get to each stage and we are going to need to be as flexible as possible about how we use these facilities to care for our population. It’s important that we draw on all of the resources that we have to care for people across the whole healthcare system, and these field hospitals are a fantastic resource for us to be able to draw on.

“I would like to thank everyone who has been involved with these projects for their outstanding effort and commitment.”

Pembrokeshire County Council’s Leader, David Simpson, added: “I am very proud of the fact that the whole operation has taken just 26 days from the very first moment the council became involved - which started with the design work - to the completed project.

“The transformation has been remarkable and will greatly assist in the fight against the coronavirus outbreak.

“This is a truly magnificent effort by all those involved and demonstrates just what can be achieved when everyone works together for a common aim.

“Indeed, from the very beginning, this has been a shining example of partnership working between ourselves - as the local authority - the Hywel Dda University Health Board and of course by Bluestone itself for making the site available in the first place.”

William McNamara, chief executive of Bluestone, added: “We are proud to be working alongside Hywel Dda and Pembrokeshire County Council to deliver Ysbyty Enfys Carreg Las.

“The strength of spirit over the last month has been formidable - the Bluestone team, Pembrokeshire County Council and the contractors from Morgan Sindall have gone above and beyond to make the transformation possible. We are pleased to be able to play our part to help those personally affected by the outbreak.”Pembrokeshire County Council’s Leader, David Simpson, paid tribute to the Authority’s in-house design team who were instrumental in the planning and coordination of the scheme in collaboration with the contractor Morgan Sindall Construction to deliver the challenging project.“I am very proud of the fact that the whole operation has taken just 26 days from the very first moment the Council became involved – which started with the design work – to the completed project” said Councillor Simpson.“The transformation has been remarkable and will greatly assist in the fight against the coronavirus outbreak.“This is a truly magnificent effort by all those involved and demonstrates just what can be achieved when everyone works together for a common aim.“Indeed, from the very beginning, this has been a shining example of partnership working between ourselves - as the local authority - the Hywel Dda University Health Board and of course by Bluestone itself for making the site available in the first place.”Robert Williams, area director at Morgan Sindall Construction, said: “We have been working tirelessly and in close collaboration with our client Pembrokeshire County Council, Bluestone National Park Resort, and Hywel Dda University Health Board to ensure the safe and efficient delivery of the new recovery centre, with construction having been carried out in line with government guidance on the safe operation of sites.“The new 130-bed facility, the construction of which was delivered by Morgan Sindall in 17 days, will provide vital extra capacity to support NHS hospitals in the area manage patient flow. My staff and our sub-contractors are very proud to be part of the team supporting the NHS on this important project.”