Hospitals in Wakefield to receive £2.6m cash boost for A&E facilities

The new funding, announced earlier this week, is part of a £300 million fund to help NHS Trusts prepare for winter, and the possibility of a second wave of coronavirus.

Under the new scheme, the Mid Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust, which runs Pinderfields, Pontefract and Dewsbury Hospitals, will receive more than £2.6 million in funding.

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The money will be used to upgrade the Trust's IT infrastructure across all three sites, as well as to fund changes across Emergency Departments to ensure that patients with confirmed or suspected Covid-19 can be treated in separate areas.

It is part of a £300m investment that will benefit 117 NHS Trusts.

Trudie Davies, Chief Operating Officer at The Mid Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust, said: “The Mid Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust is delighted to have benefitted from £2.6m worth of funding to support a number of projects.

"The funding will facilitate key initiatives which will enable us to improve patient safety and experience as the organisation gets ready for winter.

“The Emergency Department will be introducing a more robust IT infrastructure that will help our clinical staff to work more efficiently and see patients quicker.

"This technology will be rolled out across the Trust's three sites including the Urgent Treatment Centre at Pontefract Hospital.

“A number of estate changes will also be facilitated across Pinderfields and Dewsbury Emergency Departments to ensure that there is an ability to maintain the separation of Covid and non-Covid patients as we move into winter.

"This will allow us to help to maintain social distancing within the departments. This will only be successful if patients help us and use all alternatives to A&E such as out-of-hours GPs, walk-in centres, pharmacy and NHS 111 when possible.

“Further investment will also be made in Same Day Emergency Care units. This will allow us to increase capacity to ensure that patients can leave our A&E in a timely manner.”

The Mid Yorkshire Trust currently runs A&E departments at Pinderfields and Dewsbury Hospitals, while Pontefract Hospital is home to an Urgent Treatment Centre.

More than 20,000 patients a month visit A&E departments at Mid Yorkshire Hospitals, though these numbers fell rapidly in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic earlier this year.

People are encouraged to attend A&E as needed, despite lockdown rules.

Announcing the funding earlier this week, Prime Minister Boris Johnson said: “We continue to deliver on our promise to build back better and faster, with £300 million allocated today for NHS trusts to upgrade their facilities and improve A&E capacity.

“These upgrades will help our fantastic NHS prepare for the winter months, helping them to deliver essential services and reduce the risk of coronavirus infections.

“It’s vital that those who need emergency treatment this winter access it, and for those who remain concerned about visiting hospitals, let me assure you that the NHS has measures in place to keep people safe.”

All projects will be completed by the start of next year.