We are doing everything we can at our Trust to improve urgent and emergency care and other health and care services.
Across our Trust, we have made a commitment to improve urgent and emergency care. We have launched a campaign internally, and with partners, helping everyone to understand their role in improving urgent and emergency care so that every patient has high quality, compassionate care and a positive experience.
We continue to work on improvements across our hospitals and in our community care thanks to the feedback of patients, visitors and our communities.
These improvements, however, do not take away the fact that there is still much more to do. We will fully explore all the feedback and incorporate the learning into our improvement work and we are committed to working with and listening to feedback from our patients, communities, partners and colleagues.
One of the improvements includes the opening of a new gamma camera unit at Royal Shrewsbury Hospital (RSH). This is fantastic news with the first patients being scanned last week.
The £3.6 million project is the largest single investment in Nuclear Medicine that Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin has seen.
The camera, which will increase capacity for cancer scanning and reduce waiting times for patients, is used to detect cancer, paediatric conditions and other acute conditions and will produce better quality images.
I would also like to thank colleagues, patients and visitors for their support and understanding after the closure of the Outpatient entrance at Royal Shrewsbury Hospital as part of construction works for the new hospital building.
We would like to assure you that we will do all that we can to minimise disruption during the move, which will enable works to begin on the build of a new four storey hospital expansion – this is a milestone for the Hospitals Transformation Programme (HTP).
To maintain hospital operations, the entrance to the Treatment Centre will become the main entrance to the hospital during the works. All other entrances will remain open.
A new entrance is available for the public to enter the hospital opposite the main staff car park leading to RSH Level 0 (basement services).
Signage is in place at the hospital to help patients and visitors navigate their way around the site and colleagues will be on hand to direct and answer patient and visitor queries.
Patients and visitors should continue to check our Trust’s website for the most up-to-date information on accessing the hospital and for parking arrangements.
General Practices (GPs) across the country are taking collective action and although it is not classed as industrial (strike) action there may be some disruption to services across the wider health system.
We, along with other healthcare organisations are asking the public to continue to come forward for care as usual during this time.
Our emergency departments (ED) are open 24 hours a day if you have a life-threatening emergency. Please keep 999 and EDs free for genuine life-threatening emergencies.
Please continue to use the healthcare service which best suits your needs, including NHS 111 online or call 111 for urgent health advice as normal.
Your local Minor Injury Unit in Bridgnorth, Ludlow, Oswestry and Whitchurch can provide rapid treatment for injuries and illnesses that don’t require emergency hospital care.
To find out which service is right for you, you can also refer to the following guidance for help and advice: Think Which Service.