South African property investor and developer Atterbury’s landmark new development The Club, in Pretoria, now includes the fully operational Club Surgical Centre.

Club Surgical Centre, a state-of-the-art day hospital that offers cutting-edge treatment in skin cancer, cosmetic, ear-nose-and-throat and spinal surgery, began helping patients on Monday, April 9.

The centre was shaped by its specialists, together with Atterbury, and is designed optimally for their services.

Club Surgical Centre is also ground-breaking, the company said in a statement on Monday, as it has been crafted based on lading-edge world trends in day care surgery.

The centre’s cofounders, Dr Japie de Wet and Dr Pieter du Plessis, have acquired unique skills to pioneer the only multidisciplinary unit of this kind in South Africa, after having identified a need for a custom facility tailored to modern trends in day surgery during the set-up of a modern skin-cancer management programme in 2012.

Atterbury helped the partners find the home for the centre and together, the parties navigated statutory applications, licences and compliance requirements. As the project gained momentum, so did the awareness of the scope of the demand for this kind of surgical facility.

Day care surgery is becoming the norm in first world countries, with one in three surgical procedures taking place in such units. In South Africa, the current rate is about one in 12.

“Club Surgical Centre is a true asset to the community of Pretoria; the specialists operating here are all extremely well known, not only in Pretoria but countrywide. We are excited to have expert medical professionals of this calibre choose The Club precinct for their pioneering new unit,” Atterbury CEO Louis van der Watt commented.

There are three key surgical specialities in the facility.

Dr Nisius du Plessis, Dr Jannie Kok, Dr Kobus Venter and Dr Janet Izeboud have established a Centre of Ear, Nose and Throat Surgery at Club Surgery Centre.

Similarly, Dr Louis Nel has established a unit for spinal day case surgery and Club Surgical Centre will also become the diagnostic hub of Spine Africa, a multidisciplinary group of different surgical and nonsurgical specialities focusing only on the diagnosis and treatment of spinal problems.

Nel explained that this facility is attractive because it brings together a group of spine specialists who share resources and equipment – and with less duplication comes more cost-effectiveness. 

The fully-let 4 800 m2 Club Surgical Centre’s interior is designed to offer the calming experience of a modern lounge, which soothes the clinical hospital environment.

On the ground floor is a new-format Dis-Chem pharmacy, which spans around 760 m2, and is more compact and focused than the popular brand’s typical store.

In this specialist medical environment, an exceptional pharmacy was a ‘no-brainer’, explained Atterbury retail leasing agent Johan Roets, who adds that space was earmarked for Dis-Chem from the start.

It meant, though, that Dis-Chem had to create a smaller, tailor-made model to match the space available and to meet the needs of its customers in this market.

“Dis-Chem was selected for this development as the perfect match for the day hospital and its medical presence, as well as for its own strong pulling power. We know they will be a great asset to the entire Club precinct,” he noted.

Moving through Club Surgical Centre, the consulting rooms are situated on the first and second floors. Burger Radiologists’ state-of-the-art radiology suite, with the first standing MRI scanner in Africa, is situated on the first floor.

Ampath pathologists are on the second floor, and the top floor comprises the day hospital.

All of these facilities at the centre are complemented by open and basement parking, as well as its location within Atterbury’s iconic live-work-play precinct development, making it ideal for patients from all over the country, Roets added.

The founding doctors of Club Surgery Centre, which is “destined to become a medical landmark in Pretoria, already have the coveted status as one of the only accredited training facilities in mohs micrographic skin-cancer surgery, outside the US.

“This makes the centre exceptional and creates a professional legacy that will benefit a multitude of patients across the spectrum.”