The Duke of Edinburgh has been transferred to a different hospital to undergo testing and observation for a pre-existing heart condition, Buckingham Palace has said.

Philip was shielded from public view as he left King Edward VII’s hospital in central London on Monday morning where he had been receiving treatment for an infection.

Umbrellas were held up as he made his way into a waiting ambulance, at the rear of the hospital, and was taken to St Bartholomew’s Hospital, also in central London.

The Herald:

St Bartholomew’s Hospital, part of Barts Health NHS Trust, is in the City of London close to St Paul’s Cathedral, and is Britain’s oldest hospital and a centre of excellence for cardiac care.

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Barts Heart Centre, based in the hospital’s state-of-the-art King George V building, is Europe’s largest specialised cardiovascular centre, according to the NHS website.

It has 10 theatres, 10 cath labs and more than 300 general, cardiac and critical care beds.

The NHS said the centre aspires to perform more heart surgery, MRI and CT scans than any other service in the world.

A specialist heart attack centre delivers dedicated emergency care 24 hours a day, with rapid access to a team with specialist expertise and equipment.

In January 2020 the service was rated number one for cardiac arrest survival rates in London, according to the NHS website.

The website says St Bartholomew’s is Britain’s oldest hospital, set to celebrate its 900th birthday in 2023.

Buckingham Palace said in a statement: “The Duke of Edinburgh was today transferred from King Edward VII’s Hospital to St Bartholomew’s Hospital where doctors will continue to treat him for an infection, as well as undertake testing and observation for a pre-existing heart condition.

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“The duke remains comfortable and is responding to treatment but is expected to remain in hospital until at least the end of the week.”

The Herald:

St Bartholomew’s Hospital

The duke, who is three months away from his 100th birthday, was initially admitted nearly two weeks ago for a few days as a precautionary measure after feeling unwell.