Plans were developed in the early 1980s for a modern facility to replace the old Dorchester Hospital at a new site to the west of the town centre, on the land between Damers Road and Bridport Road. Construction took place in phases with the first phase on the north part of the site completed in the late 1980s under the name of West Dorset County Hospital. The second phase on the south part of the site completed in the mid-1990s at which time the who site became the Dorset County Hospital. The hospital was officially opened by the Queen on 8 May 1998. An upgraded cardiac unit with new cardiology equipment opened in 2012.
