Vision for ‘fantastic’ new emergency department at QA Hospital will ‘become a reality’ as plans approved

PORTSMOUTH is set for a new emergency department after final plans are approved and £58m of national funding is put in place.
Emily Jessica Turner
By Emily Jessica Turner
Published 3rd Oct 2022, 16:00 BST
Updated 3rd Oct 2022, 16:42 BST
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Building work has now begun on QA Hospital’s new ED, which has a planned opening date of winter 2024, now that final plans for the department have received full approval from the Department of Health and Social Care and HM Treasury.

Penny Emerit, chief executive at Portsmouth Hospitals University NHS Trust, said: ‘This is fantastic news for the local community and staff.

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‘The planned new facility will enable us to better meet the needs of our local community and improve the experience for patients accessing our ED by providing the best clinical care in a modern, safe environment.

An artist's impression of new Emergency Department.An artist's impression of new Emergency Department.
An artist's impression of new Emergency Department.

‘We have worked with clinical teams to design the layout of the department to not only give us additional capacity but to support them to work in a more streamlined way, with better visibility of our patients and closer access to essential support services such as scans and X-ray.’

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The ED will be moved and built on the current East Staff Car Park which closed in mid-September to allow site preparation works to begin.

As well as doubling the current resuscitation capacity from four adult bays to eight for patients needing treatment for critical conditions, the facility also has two further paediatric resus bays for children and increased privacy and dignity for patients with treatment in single bay rooms.

Portsmouth Hospitals University NHS Trust chief execuitve officer, Penny Emerit, photographed outside the main entrance to QA Hospital in Cosham. Picture: Morten WatkinsPortsmouth Hospitals University NHS Trust chief execuitve officer, Penny Emerit, photographed outside the main entrance to QA Hospital in Cosham. Picture: Morten Watkins
Portsmouth Hospitals University NHS Trust chief execuitve officer, Penny Emerit, photographed outside the main entrance to QA Hospital in Cosham. Picture: Morten Watkins
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Maggie MacIsaac, Chief Executive of Hampshire and Isle of Wight Integrated Care Board, said: ‘The green light for this fantastic new facility for the Queen Alexandra Hospital is tremendous news.

‘A huge amount of work has been put in by colleagues at Portsmouth Hospitals University NHS Trust to design an Emergency Department that will provide the best possible service and I am delighted their vision can now become a reality.’

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Nick Markham, the new health minister, added: ‘The new building will reduce the time patients spend in ED with more treatment rooms and a specially designed entrance to enable a faster turnaround of ambulances, getting them back on the road more quickly.

‘As a result patients in Portsmouth and the surrounding area will receive safer and more timely care when they need it, helping to tackle pressures facing emergency services in the south east.’

Related topics:QA HospitalPortsmouthPeople