New surgical unit in Bradford aims to cut waiting lists

The new surgical day case unit is expected to cost £19m to build, the NHS trust said

A new surgical day case unit is to be built at a Bradford hospital to help tackle waiting lists for surgery.

The new centre will be built at St Luke's Hospital and 5,760 operations a year can be performed at the site.

It will free up space for an extra 1,500 procedures to be carried out at Bradford Royal Infirmary, the hospital trust said.

Chief operating officer Saj Azeb said building work and staff recruitment for the unit could now begin.

The planning application for the building, at the hospital site on Little Horton Lane, has been approved by City of Bradford Council.

The day case unit is expected to cost £19m and is due to open by April 2024, according to Bradford Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.

'Shorter waits'

Mr Azeb, who is also deputy chief executive of the trust, said: "It is incredibly important to make sure that local people are able to get surgery when they need it and the unit will help us deliver our vision of providing outstanding care for our communities across Bradford.

"Improving quality and efficiency will mean patients have shorter waits for surgery, leading to improved health, quality of life and ability to get back to daily activities and work."

The new unit at St Luke's Hospital will have capacity for up to 5,760 operations a year

The unit will feature two operating theatres, running six days a week and providing only planned surgery rather than emergency care.

Less complex procedures in trauma and orthopaedics, general surgery, urology, gynaecology, plastic surgery and colorectal surgery will be provided at the site.

The hospital trust does not currently have any dedicated day case theatres, meaning all surgery in the area is carried out in the theatres at Bradford Royal Infirmary.