A new £43 million diagnostic centre in Hanley is expected to give patients across North Staffordshire access to scans and other tests without needing to go to hospital.
For people in Stone and surrounding villages, that still means travelling out of town, but the new site could offer a simpler journey than Royal Stoke for appointments such as MRI scans, CT scans, ultrasounds and X-rays.
The Stoke-on-Trent Community Diagnostic Centre, on the former Sainsbury’s site in Etruria Road, Hanley, is due to open later this month. University Hospitals of North Midlands said it will be able to see around 180,000 patients a year.
At the moment, most patients in North Staffordshire have to travel to Royal Stoke University Hospital for these kinds of tests. UHNM bosses say the new centre should improve access to diagnostic services while also easing pressure on the busy hospital site.
They hope that will help patients get diagnosed more quickly and start treatment sooner.
Elaine Andrews, deputy director for strategy and transformation, said
“While you can get some tests such as X-rays in the community, most patients currently have to go to the Royal Stoke.
“So we considered issues such as travel time and public transport and found that Hanley would be the best place for a community diagnostic centre. If you just need to get a test done, it means that you don’t have to deal with having to get to the Royal Stoke, then finding somewhere to park.
“The idea is that an acute hospital like the Royal Stoke should only be for activity that can only be done there.”
UHNM said the Hanley site was chosen because of its central location, transport links and parking.
Dr Andrews said the two year build-up to the launch had also allowed the trust time to create apprenticeships for diagnostic roles, meaning the new facility will open with a full staffing team.
There are also plans to expand the services available there in future.
Dr Anne-Marie Morris, deputy chief medical officer, said
“This is the first phase of the CDC. Once everything is up and running we’ll be looking to expand the range of tests available here.
“This is a good news story for the local NHS. It will improve access to diagnostics while helping to decompress activity at the Royal Stoke.”
NHS guidelines say patients should not have to wait more than six weeks for a diagnostic test. UHNM’s performance has improved over the past year and reached 82.1 per cent in March, but that remains below its 97 per cent target.
According to the latest report to the UHNM board, non-obstetric ultrasound has been the biggest contributor to that gap.
