Richard has welcomed news that Lister Hospital and Luton and Dunstable Hospital are set to receive an additional £6m and £5.7m, respectively, in order to support A&E capacity ahead of the winter months.
At the Luton & Dunstable, the funding will be used to expand the emergency department to incorporate Same Day Emergency Care and children’s assessment unit areas, with the temporary relocation of minor injuries. At Lister Hospital, the funding will be used for front door triage and streaming, increased capacity within the Emergency Department, with a specific focus on children, co-located assessment and Same Day Emergency Care services. There will also be dedicated radiology support to the emergency and assessment departments.
The funding is part of £150 million to be shared across 25 A&Es, with the money being used to expand waiting areas and increase the number of treatment cubicles. It is on top of the £300 million provided by the Government in August to upgrade A&Es taking the total investment in A&Es this winter to £450 million. Bedford Hospital received £3m as part of this funding for the provision of Same Day Emergency Care services, to expand capacity within the waiting areas in the emergency department and improve patient flow in the hospital to help respond to winter pressures and the risk from further outbreaks of coronavirus
In June, the Prime Minister announced plans to accelerate £5 billion of infrastructure spending as part of his New Deal for Britain – an ambitious economic strategy to build back better after coronavirus, by putting jobs, skills and infrastructure investment at the heart of the Government’s plans. This funding forms part of the New Deal, which allocated a total of £1.5 billion this year for hospital maintenance, hospital building and A&E expansion.
The funding also comes on top of the additional £3 billion that the Prime Minister recently announced to help prepare the NHS for the winter months ahead. This funding will allow the NHS to continue to use the extra hospital capacity acquired from the independent sector through the coronavirus pandemic, and also to maintain the Nightingale hospitals until the end of March next year.
Commenting, Richard said:
“Staff at Bedford, Lister and Luton & Dunstable Hospitals have worked tirelessly over recent months, and I would like to thank them for everything they have done to get our local community through the coronavirus pandemic.
“Projects are to be completed by early next year so local hospitals can benefit from the upgrades during the peak of winter. While we hope for the best this winter, it is right that we plan for the worst. This funding to upgrade A&E across the Bedfordshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and East and North Hertfordshire NHS Trust will ensure that we are in the best possible position for the challenges that the winter months may bring."
Also commenting, Health Secretary Matt Hancock said:
“We are investing £450 million to make sure our A&E departments are ready for winter. Hospitals around the country will be able to expand and upgrade to ensure they can continue safely treating patients in the coming months.
“During the peak of the pandemic we saw millions of people using NHS 111 to get the best possible advice on Covid-19, and other urgent NHS services. These pilots will build on this and test whether we can deliver quicker access to the right care, provide a better service for the public and ensure our dedicated NHS staff aren’t overwhelmed.
“We all need to play our part by washing our hands regularly, using a face covering and keeping our distance from those not in our household. We are determined to protect the NHS as we did during the peak.”