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Changes to Cheltenham A&E Services

The reconfiguration of A&E services in Cheltenham was part of a public consultation run by the former Gloucestershire Primary Care Trust in 2012, which also included proposals for other services at the two main hospitals.

In Cheltenham and Gloucester, these changes include gastroenterology, cardiology, and respiratory medicine, and they are centered on all children’s services at Gloucestershire Royal Hospital. A key consideration was the shortage of A&E consultants within the county.

Cheltenham General Hospital

Since 2013, Cheltenham General Hospital has provided a consultant-led Emergency Department (ED) from 8am-8pm and a nurse-led Minor Injuries and Illness Unit (MIIU) from 8pm - 8am, with an Intensive Care Service for critically unwell patients. The Gloucestershire health system undertook further public consultation in 2020 and further engagement between 2022 and 2023 on shaping the future of our hospital services. This programme of work, called Fit for the Future (FFTF), focused on strengthening eleven specialist services across our two main hospital sites: Cheltenham General Hospital (CGH) and Gloucestershire Royal Hospital (GRH).

This would ensure that highly specialist care would be provided to more patients, waiting times would be lower, patient experience would be improved and patient outcomes would be better. The approach has meant that Cheltenham Hospital has become a Centre of Excellence for planned care, enabling a greater focus on urgent and emergency care at Gloucestershire Royal Hospital. Recent improvements in Cheltenham have included:

  • Becoming a regional centre of excellence for cancer and oncology
  • A larger specialist Hyper Acute Stroke Unit (HASU)
  • Centre for Urology services, including a new Urology Assessment Unit
  • An improved Consultant-led Same Day Emergency Care (SDEC) service, which provides care for emergency patients who would otherwise be admitted
  • Opening of Chedworth Surgical Unit and two new theatres.

Given the staffing and resources available, this approach ensures that highly specialist care will be provided to more patients enabling us to improve patients’ outcomes, reduce waiting times, ensure more patients receive the right care, at the right time, in the right place, enhance safer staffing levels, attract and retain the very best staff and improve patient experience.

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