HIS Royal Highness the Duke of Gloucester will officially open the new £17 million Altrincham Hospital this Thursday.

Arriving at 1.30pm, he will be taken on a tour of the new facilities by hospital chiefs, politicians and civic dignitaries.

During his private tour, the duke will meet staff and patients on the 20-station renal dialysis unit, which offers maintenance dialysis for up to 80 patients a day.

He will also see the see the audiology booth in action with a young patient, talk to staff about the new expanded ophthalmology service and the expert assessments now available to local people without having to travel to Manchester Royal Eye Hospital.

Elsewhere, the duke will see new state-of-the-art digital radiography equipment costing £350,000 that has been installed to produce higher quality X-ray and ultrasound images within seconds.

The new Altrincham Hospital replaces the previous facilities in the old Victorian hospital in Market Street.

All services from the previous hospital have transferred to the new development, including the nurse-led minor injuries unit for the assessment of minor conditions including fractures, burns and wounds where emergency nurse practitioners see 50-60 patients a day.

Following the tour of the new facilities, the Duke will be invited to unveil a commemorative plaque and sign the visitors’ book.