More than £14 million is being invested by the Welsh Government
to extend and reconfigure parts of the Grange University Hospital
emergency department, Health Minister Eluned Morgan has
officially announced.
The funding will improve the quality of patient and staff
experience and ensure the right facilities are in place to
consistently deliver safe and timely care to those who need to
use the service.
It will see the main waiting area significantly extended and the
current waiting area reconfigured into a rapid assessment area,
where patients can receive examinations and investigations
quickly and be monitored for short periods.
The Grange Hospital has seen unprecedented demand at its
emergency department since its opening in November 2020, with the
impact of Coronavirus contributing to this issue.
Current attendances are around 263 patients per day on average.
Original plans were for 100-170 attendances per day. This has
resulted in overcrowding and uncomfortable conditions for
patients and their relatives, and difficult working conditions
for staff.
The new design of the emergency department will double the
current waiting area capacity, increase triage capacity, offer
greater visibility of the waiting room to support monitoring of
patients and add more space for ambulance handovers and for
clinical assessment and treatment.
Health Minister Eluned Morgan said:
“The emergency department at the Grange hospital is under extreme
pressure.
“This considerable investment will result in improved patient
safety, comfort and privacy. It will also provide an improved
working environment for staff.
“We continue to work with the health board to support them in
delivering actions and improvements related to urgent and
emergency care. This includes offering safe alternatives to
emergency departments and hospital admissions, ensuring only the
people who really need to be in hospital are there and receive
the best outcomes possible.”
Nicola Prygodzicz, Chief Executive of Aneurin Bevan University
Health Board, said:
“We are very grateful to obtain approval for the funding from the
Welsh Government to extend the Emergency Department at The Grange
University Hospital.
“Since its original design, the demand on the Emergency
Department has changed significantly and far more people are
self-presenting than was originally anticipated.
“Having taken into account this additional need, we have put
plans in place to extend the waiting area capacity and assessment
space to meet the growing needs of our population.
“We expect the new extension will greatly improve the experience
of our patients when they need to attend the Emergency Department
at The Grange University Hospital and we’d like to thank them for
their patience while the building work is carried out.”
