Grimsby hospital opens two emergency care units costing £4.4m

The same day emergency care unit aims to reduce A&E waiting times

Two emergency care units have opened at Diana, Princess of Wales Hospital in Grimsby at a cost of £4.4m.

The "same day emergency care" and the "integrated acute assessment" units are located next to the hospital's new emergency department.

Patients can be referred to the units by their GPs or the NHS 111 service and the hospital trust intends them to reduce waiting times.

The development is part of a £65m investment in the area's healthcare.

Medicine Matron Joanne Forward said the new units will allow staff to send patients directly to the best clinician for their case.

"The units will be staffed by senior clinicians from a range of disciplines," she said.

"So instead of going into the emergency department and waiting to be admitted to a ward in order to be seen by these clinicians, you can be referred straight to them by your GP, 111, the ambulance service or our community teams.

"This means we can start your treatment more quickly and we may not need to admit you into hospital at all. And, if you do need to come to hospital for inpatient care, it's likely you will be able to go home more quickly."

The £18m emergency department was opened in October 2022

In 2022 the hospital opened a new £18m emergency department at the hospital.

The trust said that it treats 150,000 emergency cases a year at its three hospitals.

Jonathan Lofthouse from Northern Lincolnshire and Goole NHS Foundation Trust said the new units were designed after consultation with clinical staff.

"Not only do these units look fantastic but, when combined with the new emergency department, these facilities will make a huge difference to our patients," he said.

"There are more examination rooms and side rooms than we currently have available, and we can be flexible in how we use them. So at times of high demand we have additional space available."