Bosses vow over £1m Dudley urgent care centre to ease pressure on A&E

The Dudley Group NHS Foundation Trust has received £1million funding from the Government and it will be used in a bid to ease pressure on A&E

Bosses will invest the cash in the new facility which will help staff to deal with patients coming into A&E more efficiently, relieving hospital resources and meeting waiting time targets.

Diane Wake, chief executive at the Dudley Group NHS Foundation Trust, said: "We are in the planning stages and the work will be completed by Christmas."

The funding has come from the Department of Health, which allocated £56m to hospitals around the country, earlier this month.

The extra cash has been welcomed by Dudley Council's cabinet member for health and wellbeing, Councillor Rachael Harris.

She said: "I welcome any resources that come into the Dudley borough.

"The A&E department at Russells Hall has been very stretched, but staff did very well over winter compared to surrounding areas.

"Any investment is clearly welcome. It wasn't expected so I do wonder about the timing. It could have come earlier on in the year."

The trust has celebrated the new funding from the Government, which is well needed.

A spokesman for the trust said: "We are absolutely thrilled to be receiving £1m funding to relieve pressure on our accident and emergency department. This really is very good news for all of our patients."

They described how the funding will allow a 'centralised point of access' for patients who will be directed to A&E or the UCC depending on their clinical need.

"Having the two services side by side will mean patients will benefit from a seamless service with clinicians from primary care and the hospital working even more closely together," the spokesman added.

The government hopes the cash can help hospitals across the country meet A&E targets of admitting, transferring and discharging 95 per cent of patients within four hours.