One of the world’s largest shopping malls has been transformed into a 3,000-bed hospital in a bid to combat the spread of COVID-19. The hospital, at the 20m-sq ft Iran Mall in northern Tehran, was created in seven days at a cost of US$10m with the help of a 3,000-strong team, working shifts around the clock. It is already treating over 250 patients.
The mall normally houses 700 shops and 200 restaurants, and now 500,000 sq ft has now been transformed into one of the world’s largest temporary hospital facilities. It is equipped with specialist medical equipment and infrastructure, including ICUs and ventilators, and over 400 medical professionals including doctors, nurses and administrative staff are currently working at the hospital.
The project was instigated and fully funded by real estate investor Ali Ansari. He said: “This is an unprecedented time and for that we need an unprecedented effort to use our resources, energy and ingenuity to help medical experts defeat the virus. We stand ready and willing to share what we learned from this experience for the benefit of others across the world.”
