Queen’s Hospital in Romford, east London, has secured £42m for a redevelopment of its accident and emergency (A&E) department, following a 22-month campaign by Barking, Havering and Redbridge University Hospitals NHS Trust.
The funding will enable the trust to transform the adult and children’s emergency departments, which are under sustained pressure from patient demand.
Opened in 2006, the existing A&E department was designed to accommodate 325 patients a day but now regularly sees more than twice that number.
The redevelopment will introduce dedicated waiting areas, improve clinical staff’s visibility of patients and create a layout intended to support the movement of patients through the department. Plans also include increasing the amount of natural light.
The redesign will reduce the distance patients must walk from the hospital entrance to the adult A&E department from 335 steps to around 50.
Children’s A&E will also be reconfigured, with the corridor separating the emergency department from its assessment area removed to bring the two spaces together.
The plans include a dedicated resuscitation area and improved facilities for children who need space to decompress.
The new department is intended to improve patient safety and experience while reducing overcrowding, waiting times and the need to care for patients in corridors.
“The £42 million allows us to build on the work our teams have already done to improve the service we provide in our A&E, reduce waiting times and the need for corridor care," said Fiona Wheeler, interim Chief Executive of Barking, Havering and Redbridge University Hospitals NHS Trust.
It will put an end to staff working in cramped conditions and create a better clinical environment.
The trust is also planning to work with UCLPartners on the development of a digital system for the new department, drawing on the health innovation organisation’s expertise and research.
The £42m investment forms part of a wider £140m government funding package announced on 18 October to increase urgent and emergency care capacity across England ahead of winter.
The trust has not yet confirmed a construction start date for the redevelopment.
The redevelopment follows other improvements to Queen’s Hospital, including a dedicated mental health space for children and young people and a rapid refurbishment of clinical areas completed in 48 hours.
