Work has started on a £1.2 million new Acute Medical Unit at Croydon University Hospital.

The new unit will help to reduce waiting times by taking pressure off the busy Accident and Emergency Department. It will be open 24 hours a day, seven days a week and will be run by a dedicated team of 8 consultants (4 of them posts created specifically for this unit), supported by highly skilled doctors, nurses, therapists, social services and other healthcare staff. It will be made up of:

• a clinical assessment unit, which assesses patients who need further examinations or treatment before being discharged;

• a short stay area for patients who need to stay in hospital for one to three nights;

• a diagnostic area for rapid access to tests; and

• an ambulatory care area, which provides treatment and observation to patients who don’t need to be admitted.

Work has already begun on totally refitting two currently disused wards and the unit should open this autumn. It will be a much better environment for patients and their families than the current Medical Assessment Unit, which is in the old Woodcroft Wing. It will also provide a much more appropriate setting for patients who have been referred by their GP, who at the moment need to go through the Accident and Emergency Department.

It’s great to see investment like this in our local NHS.