Revamp for Emergency Department at Good Hope
Published on 27/06/2023
A newly refurbished area of the Emergency Department (ED) at Good Hope Hospital has opened to patients.
It is the latest development in the Trust’s plan to improve patient care and flow within our hospitals, ensuring patients get the right care, in the right place and at the right time.
The Majors C area, and the next door Ambulance Decision Area (ADA), have seen a £1.5m investment and now offer a better environment for both patients and staff.
James Manley, Senior Charge Nurse in ED, said: “Not only is Majors C a lighter and brighter area, it also increases our capacity to see and treat patients.
“We now have eight new trolley spaces where we can assess patients more quickly, getting them the care they need sooner. This has created additional flow from the waiting area ensuring they are getting the care they need.
“A huge thank you to our estates colleagues who have made the new area a reality.”
For a time, Majors C was based in the ADA next door, so the move out to the newly-refurbished area has allowed for an expansion of the ADA in the area it leaves behind.
In partnership with West Midlands Ambulance Service (WMAS), the Trust has introduced paramedic-staffed ADAs to all its hospitals which offer emergency care.
The ADAs mean WMAS staff can take patients off ambulances and into a safe space, where they can access tests, treatments and care sooner.
The ADAs are just one way the Trust is working to improve flow across its hospitals and help patients in the community access the care they need in the right place, at the right time.
Our clinicians are providing virtual support to ambulance colleagues out in the community, either via video link or telephone, helping some patients get the care they need at home rather than in hospital.
UHB has partnered with Birmingham Community Healthcare Trust to secure more community beds, and the Early Intervention team is helping to reduce the number of people needing emergency care in the first place.
The Trust has also introduced new emergency pathways where Same Day Emergency Care and Urgent Care Services are taking lower-risk patients away from the Emergency Department, with appropriate patients sent straight to our Medical Assessment Units or directly to a specialty team.
More patients are being admitted to wards from our assessment areas while the discharge process is completed to make room available.
In addition, an increase in flow coordinators across all sites makes the discharge process smoother by prioritising the tasks that need to be completed in order for a discharge to take place are underway; for example ensuring prescriptions for take home medications are written by medical colleagues.
