| Update on Community Hospital Developments in Gloucestershire |
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Published on 16/4/2012
Vale Community Hospital in Dursley
The new Vale Community Hospital opened in Dursley on Monday 5 December. The two storey hospital building is located at Littlecombe, east of the A4135 in a valley between Dursley and Cam. Designed around an attractive central courtyard, it has 20 individual en-suite rooms for medical care and rehabilitation. Other services include community therapy, outpatient clinics and a medical assessment centre providing treatment for minor injuries. There is also a range of diagnostic services such as X-ray with scope for mobile services such as MRI (magnetic resonance imaging). It replaces the existing Berkeley Hospital and Sandpits Clinic in Dursley.
As well as services provided at the new hospital, community teams of health and social care staff will work jointly to support people in their own homes, using new technology such as telecare. Providing this kind of community based care locally will help to reduce the number of unnecessary hospital admissions and reduce the length of time people need to stay in hospital.
Art in Health
To ensure the new hospital has pleasant surroundings an Art in Health Group looked at the colour scheme and artwork. Artist Catrin Jones was commissioned to design the colour scheme in the hospital, inspired by the historic textile industry using colours such as Uley Blue and Stroudwater Scarlet. Funding for all artworks was received from the Arts Council and charitable funds.
Contact details:
Vale Community Hospital
Lister Road, Dursley GL11 4BA
Main Hospital: 0345 659 8494
Ward: 0345 659 8475
Minor injury service: 0345 659 8436
The North Cotswolds Hospital, Moreton in Marsh and the George Moore Community Clinic, Bourton-on-the-Water
In Moreton-in-Marsh, a new landmark, state of the art community hospital is emerging on the southern approach to the town (Fosse Way, close to the Garden Centre), with the main infrastructure of the building complete. The building contractors are now moving into fitting out the interior of the building.
This new NHS hospital (North Cotswolds Hospital) will be a high quality building with 22 en-suite bedrooms at first floor level, offering the highest standards of privacy and dignity and infection control.
The hospital will also offer diagnostic facilities such as x-ray, along with a Minor Injury Unit and outpatient services led by Consultants and other health specialists such as ophthalmology, gynaecology, orthopaedics, mental health, children’s services, dermatology, general surgery, ear, nose and throat and audiology. There will be a facility for mobile services such as breast screening.
Therapy services will include physiotherapy, occupational therapy, speech and language therapy and podiatry. There will be a strong link with community health and social care teams providing therapy in patient’s own homes – providing a seamless service for the individual.
In Bourton-on-the-Water, a newly refurbished outpatient facility, next to the current hospital building, will provide a range of consultant and other health specialist led outpatient clinics, together with therapy services to include podiatry, dental and physiotherapy.
As part of maintaining services to meet the needs of patients in the North Cotswolds, a new modern intermediate care rehabilitation unit will be provided on another site in Bourton-on-the-Water with 14 community beds. This will support intensive therapy services (rehabilitation care) to support independent living.
The unit will be a separate, but linked part of a larger community care centre in Station Road and will ensure that care is provided in an environment that can achieve the highest standards of privacy and dignity. This includes individual rooms and care provided in a ‘home like’ environment.
The centre will be run by not-for-profit organisation, The Orders of St John Care Trust, an experienced provider of this kind of care. NHS Gloucestershire is working jointly with our county council partners to ensure that the community beds meet both health and social care needs for local people.
It is anticipated that the new outpatient and community health base in Bourton-on-the-Water will be available from Summer 2012 with the intermediate care rehabilitation unit open by late Spring 2012. The new North Cotswolds Community Hospital in Moreton-in-Marsh is scheduled to be open to patients by Spring 2012.
Developing a new community hospital for Tewkesbury
After a careful selection process, land has now been bought next to the current Tewkesbury Hospital site (known as Greenbank). The current hospital site, along with the adjacent Greenbank land, offers a great opportunity to develop a modern, state of the art, energy efficient hospital in a central location in the Town that supports high quality care. A planning application has been submitted.
The new hospital would have 20 individual, en-suite rooms for patients offering the highest standards of privacy and dignity and infection control.
Services will include diagnostic services (such as X-ray), minor injury and illness services, a range of outpatient and therapy services, a treatment suite and inpatient beds.
Developing community services are also continuing that ‘wrap around’ the hospital services and are essential in ensuring that patients receive the right care, in the right place, at the right time, by the right teams.
This includes:
• joined up health and social care teams, providing care in the patient’s own home e.g. nursing and rehabilitation care
• working with Age UK to provide essential support in people’s homes, including personal care
• introducing a new urgent Priority Response Service in Tewkesbury – a team of professionals, including therapists and nurses, who will respond within 1 to 2 hours to provide care in the person’s home where possible
• substantial investments in telehealth technology supporting care at home and self management of long term conditions, such as heart and lung disease – giving patients and carers increased confidence and independence
• working with the Ambulance Service to make the most of the skills within their teams when someone calls 999 to provide care and treatment close to home or in the patient’s home when it is safe to do so
• working with GPs to identify people most at risk of being admitted to hospital and providing them with a nominated health or social care professional who knows them and their condition
• working to introduce Stroke Early Supported Discharge – helping certain stroke patients to leave hospital sooner with specialist rehabilitation support provided at home.
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