Outpatients across Birmingham treated at NEC instead of usual hospitals
Some outpatients across Birmingham are being treated at the NEC instead of at their usual hospitals.
Health bosses at the University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust hope the initiative will help them work through a backlog of cancelled appointments during the peak of the coronavirus crisis.
The outpatients clinics at the NEC started on Monday and will run until the end of July. The clinics will see up to 150 patients every day, covering 18 services.
The clinics are located in the Birmingham Health Campus set up by the Birmingham and Solihull Clinical Commissioning Group (BSOL CCG), located on the south side of the NEC.
The outpatient facility is not connected to the NHS Nightingale Hospital Birmingham bosses say, which remains on standby to provide extra inpatient capacity for hospitals across the region if required.
A spokesman for the University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust said: "From Monday, June 29, University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust has been running some outpatient clinics at the NEC.
"These will be accommodated in the Birmingham and Solihull Health Campus set up by BSOL CCG, which is situated on the south side of the NEC.
"Repurposing part of this facility will enable the trust to treat patients who we would otherwise not be able to see immediately on our hospital sites due to restricted clinics to accommodate social distancing and reduce footfall.
"This initiative will support the trust in working through the backlog of patients whose appointments were cancelled during the peak of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Consultations
"The clinics will see up to 150 patients per day, covering 18 services, including ultrasound diagnostics and anticoagulation between now and the end of July.
"We will also continue to offer telephone and video consultations to patients who do not require in-person consultations in order to protect them and our staff.
"University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust is also running a drive-through phlebotomy service, by appointment only, at the health campus.
"The outpatient facility and the phlebotomy service are not connected to the NHS Nightingale Hospital Birmingham, which remains on standby to provide extra inpatient capacity for hospitals across the Midlands should it be needed.”
The University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust runs Queen Elizabeth, Heartlands, Good Hope and Solihull hospitals.
