Shropshire nursing boss: State-of-the-art equipment will mean quicker turnarounds and shorter waits

Our trust is currently building a unit to house a new gamma camera which is fantastic news as it will increase our capacity for cancer screening and lead to a reduction in waiting times for our patients.

It is the largest single investment in Nuclear Medicine that Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin has seen historically and will ensure that this vital service remains local to our patients going forward.

The state-of-the-art camera, which is used to detect cancer, paediatric conditions and other acute conditions, will be in use at Royal Shrewsbury Hospital from this spring/summer (2024).

It will produce better quality images, improve turnaround times for issuing reports and reduce scanning times, which will enable us to see more patients.

The investment in the new camera will complement the facilities offered at the new Community Diagnostic Centre (CDC), at Hollinswood House, Stafford Park, Telford.

Appointments for pathology (patient blood tests) and radiology, are provided at the CDC and this means there is extra capacity for non-urgent diagnostic testing.

Since it opened in October, the Radiology department has so far seen more than 6,922 patients and more than 82,000 blood tests have been taken.

That is an incredible figure and shows we are making improvements in reducing waiting times.

Last week saw the publication of the Care Quality Commission (CQC) Maternity Survey, which has found that women are listened to, treated with respect and dignity, and involved in decisions about their care at the trust.

The survey involved 121 NHS trusts in England and received more than 25,000 responses. It is designed to build an understanding of the risk and quality of maternity services and care.

The survey highlights women’s views on all aspects of their maternity care from the first time they see a clinician or midwife, through to the care provided at home in the weeks following the arrival of their baby.

We welcome this survey as it gives us independent feedback about where our service users think we are providing outstanding care, and areas in which we need to improve.

Families are at the heart of the care we provide and we will continue to focus on them to improve our maternity services.

Following the success of our previous open day, we will once more be opening the doors of our maternity services to the public on Saturday, February 24.

If you are pregnant, considering parenthood or are interested in what we do, we would like to welcome you to the Shropshire Women and Children’s Centre at The Princess Royal Hospital in Telford to learn more.

The open day from 10am to 3pm will offer hourly guided tours of the trust’s Antenatal Ward, Delivery Suite, Midwife Led Unit and Postnatal Ward. Parking will be free for anyone attending.

You will also be able to meet some of our teams, take part in Q&A sessions with midwives, watch simulation training and visit information stalls.

There is no need to register to attend the event, visitors are invited to turn up on the day.

Children are welcome to attend, however will be unable to join any tours.

Finally, you still have time to give us your views in a survey on how you would like to connect with our hospitals.

Our Community Engagement team is running a survey, which closes this Friday. The survey is available here: https://bit.ly/CSPR01 .

If you would like more information about how to get involved with our hospitals, please email the team by emailing sath.engagement@nhs.net or calling 01743 492256.