New £842m Queen Elizabeth University Hospital unit 'too small'

The £842m Queen Elizabeth University Hospital began taking patients in April

A patient assessment unit at Glasgow's new £842m Queen Elizabeth University Hospital has been expanded because it was too small to cope with demand.

The Immediate Assessment Unit (IAU) handles patients referred by a doctor.

NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde (NHS GGC) said it had been "seeing significantly more patients than was projected".

The health board said that since Monday it had expanded the space available and increased the "amount of consultant time in the unit".

The state-of-the-art facility has been beset by problems since it began taking patients, including ongoing difficulties meeting government waiting times targets.

Earlier this month, an investigation was launched into the death of an elderly patient on a trolley in the IAU.

Speaking in the Scottish Parliament on Wednesday, Health Secretary Shona Robison said it had been recognised that the IAU needed to be bigger than originally planned.

'Tackle bottlenecks'

In a statement, NHS GGC said: "We have said for some time now that our analysis is showing that the new model of care within our IAU is seeing significantly more patients than was projected.

"A number of additional steps are being taken to tackle bottlenecks within the unit to improve the service for patients.

"As of this Monday, the IAU has been expanded to create more space for patients who only need to be investigated and assessed but do not need to be admitted to a ward bed."

The statement said that the "expansion of space" had been "matched by an increased amount of consultant time in the unit".

It added: "By seeing this type of patient in a different area we are confident that this will help to address bottle necks within the unit and reduce the number of patients requiring a bed for further assessment.

"To support this area we are putting in an additional five whole time equivalent nurses and an additional junior doctor."

'Performing well'

NHS GGC said that the hospital, since it opened in April, had "successfully and quickly treated tens of thousands of inpatients, outpatients and day cases" and was "performing very well in many important areas of service delivery".

The new campus replaces the Royal Hospital for Sick Kids at Yorkhill, the Southern General Hospital, the Western and Victoria Infirmaries, and the Mansionhouse Unit.

The 1,109-bed hospital was built on the site of the Southern General and is one of the largest acute hospitals in the UK.