Implementing Same Day Emergency Care

Under the NHS Long Term Plan, all hospitals with a Type 1 Emergency Department like Blackpool Victoria Hospital, will provide Same Day Emergency Care for medical and surgical services for a minimum of 12 hours a day, seven days a week, ideally operating during peak demand times.

Blackpool Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust will meet this requirement in a phased approach during the next 12 months with a programme of works beginning on Monday, 20 September 2021.

The first phase of the move is to relocate existing Ambulatory Emergency Care Service, based in Ward 18, to the modular build on Whinpark 2 car park just outside the Emergency Department.

The medical Same Day Emergency Care service will continue to accept appropriate referrals to the new location via A&E, GPs, NWAS, Urgent Treatment Centres or from the community.

The new unit will operate from 8am to midnight with the last referral being taken up to 9pm. On arrival at the new location, patients will be registered, triaged and have a preliminary assessment by a senior decision maker.

Any treatment, procedures or diagnostics required will be carried out and patients discharged or booked in for a follow up appointment.  The main aim of the new clinical model is to rapidly assess and treat patients in the same day and avoid unnecessary admission and long waits in A&E.

The second phase is to move the Surgical Assessment Unit on Ward 19 to the vacated space on Ward 18.

The Surgical Assessment Unit will continue to operate as  before in its new area initially but there are plans in place to develop a rapid assessment model for more surgical specialities and also trial additional Same Day Emergency Care surgical pathways.

The third phase of these moves is to create a medical Short Stay Unit on the vacated space on Ward 19.

The Short Stay Unit will have 20 beds and will be managed by the Acute Medical team. This unit is being developed to manage those patients who have been assessed and are considered to be acutely unwell but can be managed with a short stay admission of no longer than 72 hours.

These moves are scheduled to happen on the 20 September 2021 and will be for a period of 12 months until the new Critical Care building which is currently being built,  is ready for operation in August 2022 when both Medical and Surgical Same Day Emergency Care will operate with a new combined model of care.

This is an exciting time for the Trust as we prepare to undertake these interim changes in readiness for the new Emergency Village.

Read more about the Emergency Village and Critical Care development here: https://www.bfwh.nhs.uk/emergency-village/

Posted in Home Page, Positive, Press Releases.