According to an NHS trust, a hospital is "approaching its end of life" and needs to be replaced immediately.
Wycombe Hospital was "safe," according to Buckinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust (BHT), but ongoing maintenance and repairs cost about £2 million annually.
Neil Macdonald, the chief executive, said they had not given up hope of raising £200 million for a purpose-built planned care facility to be built on the property.
There are different options available to us, he said.
In April 2022, a structural integrity investigation into the hospital was launched. During this time, scaffolding and green netting were placed on the main building on Queen Alexandra Road.
More than a year later, Mr. Macdonald declared that the tower was "perfectly safe," but the trust needed £80 million to repair its critical infrastructure. Despite this, it would not have a facility that satiated modern healthcare requirements.
He explained that the scaffolding provided access to the upper floors where the building's ongoing maintenance, inspections, and repairs were being carried out.
Bits are not falling off of it, but we must constantly check to make sure everything is in working order, and if necessary, we must replace any damaged components. ".
He also mentioned that the 1961 structure's small, congested wards, inadequate ventilation, and growing susceptibility to water damage.
It's nearing the end of its useful life and needs to be replaced immediately, he said.
"It costs about £2 million a year just to maintain the scaffolding and pay the contractors.
"I would rather spend taxpayer money on new, cutting-edge healthcare facilities for the twenty-first century rather than on a building that won't be there for very long. ".
The trust claimed that it would require up to £200 million to erect a purpose-built facility for planned care on the property, and that without additional funding, it would not be able to repair the tower or build the new facility.
Although he said it was "really disappointing" to not receive recent government funding, he would keep working to secure the critical funding the hospital required.
He added, "There are other options available to us in terms of different ways we might find some of that money or maybe break the project down into smaller chunks.
"Let's go! We're ready. With a few smaller sums of money, we could be quite nimble. ".
Five hospitals outside the area that were "in urgent need of repair" were given priority, according to the Department of Health and Social Care.
