Private healthcare group Spire has struck a deal with NHS Scotland to draft in its Murrayfield Hospital in Edinburgh to help deal with the Covid-19 crisis.
Under the agreement, Spire is making the staff, facilities, equipment and services at the hospital available immediately for an initial period of three months.
Spire said the additional capacity would relieve pressure on NHS hospitals and enable them to focus on treating Covid-19 patients.
Ken Hay, hospital director at Spire Edinburgh Hospitals, said: "We are proud that we will be supporting the NHS in every way we can over the next few months, to tackle this unprecedented global health crisis."
In March the group signed a deal with NHS England to make all its 35 private hospitals there available for public healthcare.
Last week Spire said it was suspending dividends although said its lenders have agreed to waivers on loan covenants this year. The group also stressed it has sufficient liquidity and financial stability to cope with the crisis.
