Although the Angiography Suite at St Peter’s Hospital was already a centre of cardiac excellence, the service was unable to reach its full potential due to the way in which the unit was laid out across the hospital. Neither the static catheterisation lab nor the mobile/relocatable unit were in close proximity to the day ward, resulting in a patient pathway was not streamlined.
Additionally, the day ward was located in a general medical ward and, as such, it was not always guaranteed that the beds allocated to the suite would be available to elective day patients, sometimes resulting in patient cancellations on the day of their appointment. Expanding the existing facility to enhance the pathway was difficult due to lack of space and funding.
The Trust’s vision was to replace existing facilities with a purpose built catheterisation suite that would offer an extensive range of enhanced cardiac procedures in an all-inclusive unit that would centralise all aspects of the patient pathway, and provide a local service to the population of North West Surrey.
The Trust required a partner who could deliver financial investment, and one that had a national reputation for the delivery of safe, high quality patient care and an outstanding experience for patients. Shared specialist staffing models were used to enhance job variation and retention with the Trust, which required a multidisciplinary model of working, founded on continuous open dialogue between InHealth and the Trust.
Following an investment of more than £2.6 million, the new InHealth Cardiac Unit incorporated 2 labs, installed with state-of-the-art Siemens Artis Zee ceiling and floor mounted systems, a pre-assessment room, an attached 10-bed day ward and a 2-bed recovery area.
The unit receives 250 to 300 patients a month, all of which are booked in by a trained InHealth administration team who have an excellent understanding of managing the patients’ 18 week pathway. Reports show that all patients are being offered an appointment between 4 and 6 weeks from referral, and no one is waiting longer than 12 weeks for any treatment.
This amazing development is an excellent example of the private and public service working together. The cardiac unit is absolutely fabulous, bringing all our facilities into one department, providing our patients with an improved service and our cardiac staff an excellent centre to learn and develop.
