DESPITE minor construction delays, the New Farnham Hospital is on target to open this autumn.
The £17 million facility at Guildford Road will have 84 beds, including an inpatient wing, which was hard fought for by local campaigners.
At the heart of its services are its three GP practices which are relocating from their current base at Farnham Health Centre.
The town's fourth practice, Downing Street Surgery, had also been invited for an all-encompassing GP centre, but it opted to expand its own site.
Other facilities at the hospital will include community nursing, 24-hour emergency care, dental nursing and outpatient services supported by tele-medicine. This will enable doctors to rapidly co-ordinate with specialists, sending x-rays via telephone.
There will also be treatment for elderly patients suffering dementia, and a range of children's services.
It is now anticipated that the contractors will hand over the building to Guildford and Waverley Primary Care Trust toward the end of this month so that equipment and furniture can be moved in ready to receive outpatients at the beginning of October.
Work will be ongoing to complete the car park and demolish the buildings of the present hospital, which they expect to complete by next April.
A topping-off ceremony for the hospital was held in February, followed by a naming competition. Residents voted in favour of its title maintaining a link with the former hospital.
Mary Probert, the Trust's associate director in charge of the project, said: "This is a major project and the contractors have so far kept very close to the timetable we originally agreed. Naturally we are keen to take possession of the building as soon as possible to improve the service we can offer to patients. We are all pulling together to minimise disruption to our transfer plan and the last of our services will be moved in and be up and running by the middle of November as originally scheduled."