- New Surgical Triage Unit reducing Emergency Department wait times for patients needing urgent surgery
- Clinicians review patients to see if they can be fast-tracked to receive treatment sooner
- Initial data reveals it’s halving the amount of time patients needing emergency surgery spend in hospital
A new Surgical Triage Unit at Royal Bolton Hospital is reducing how long people have to wait in the Emergency Department if they potentially need emergency surgery.
Clinicians regularly review patients who are waiting in the Emergency Department to see if they are able to be fast-tracked to the unit to receive care and treatment sooner.
The unit aims to streamline how patients move through the hospital and improve their experience by delivering faster admissions, better continuity of care and increase capacity for emergency and day-case surgery.
In its first few months it has halved the amount of time patients with emergency surgery spend in hospital from an average of 1.5 days to 0.7 days.
James Hall, Consultant at Bolton NHS Foundation Trust, explained:
“These are all patients who would have previously been admitted to hospital, but are instead now seen and treated much sooner.
“The Surgical Triage Unit takes all patients with an emergency presentation of suspected general surgery, which is conditions such as appendicitis, abscesses or bowel obstruction.”
The unit is one several new initiatives to ease winter pressures and ensure people are able to access the care they need as quickly as possible.
‘My experience has been absolutely brilliant’
One of those to have benefitted from the new unit is Linda Bolton, after she arrived at the Emergency Department with pain near her abdomen, which was quickly diagnosed as gallstones.
Linda said:
“I had an initial wait in the Emergency Department of about an hour and a half where I was triaged and had some initial tests, but I was surprised by how quickly I was moved up to a bed here in the Surgical Triage Unit.
“I was sent to A&E by my GP and because I was in so much pain I was dreading it as I worried about how long I would have to sit and wait, but my experience has been absolutely brilliant.
“The staff quickly prescribed with me pain relief, made sure I was getting the tests I needed, and before I knew it I had my diagnosis with plans for me get the help I need. I can’t thank them all enough.”
Bolton NHS Foundation Trust has shared information and advice about choosing the right NHS service on its website. For help with symptoms please visit 111.nhs.uk.
