The government has announced it will give more than £145 million to NHS Trusts across the country ahead of winter to improve emergency care.
The funding from the Department of Health and Social Care’s existing budget will be spent on 81 new schemes. This will include upgrading wards, redeveloping A&E departments, improving same-day emergency care, improving systems for managing the number of beds in use and providing an additional 900 beds.
The University Hospital of North Midlands is set to receive £8.82 million, which will go towards two additional wards on the Royal Stoke site.
East Kent Hospitals University NHS Foundation Trust will receive £6.42 million to increase emergency care capacity at the William Harvey Hospital and at the Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother Hospital.
At Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, the money will assist emergency day care, managing the flow of patients through the hospital and improving the way ambulances hand over patients.
Earlier this year the government provided £36.3 million to Ambulance Trusts to prepare for winter. The money will pay for 256 new ambulances as well as ‘make ready’ hubs at Ambulance Trust headquarters to allow better restocking and maintenance of vehicles.
Health and Social Care Secretary Matt Hancock says: “Staff put in a huge amount of work preparing our health service for the challenge of treating more patients over winter and it’s right that we make sure they have the resources they need so people receive the care they deserve.
“That’s why I will be providing an additional £145 million now to upgrade wards, redevelop A&Es and further improve emergency care in time for winter. And through the long-term plan for the NHS we will go further, providing an extra £20.5 billion a year by 2023 to 2024 to transform care for patients and guarantee the future of our health service.”
