Hospital to get unit for minor injuries

The money is being spent on creating a new minor injuries unit in the emergency department, which will assess and treat a range of injuries and illnesses, and also giving the back entrance to the hospital a facelift.

Emergency medicine consultant Dr Julian Humphrey said: “Sometimes people with minor injuries or illness have longer waiting times as we have insufficient space for the number of patients who want to be seen.

“Having a larger dedicated area for minor injuries should help us deal with all our ambulatory patients without prolonged waiting times. It also means patients will receive the best possible treatment and advice, efficiently and effectively from the most appropriate health care professional.”

The new minor injuries unit will cost £240,000, while a further £73,000 is being spent on the other side of the hospital to improve an entrance.

Head of estates Lorraine Christopher said: “This is just one scheme we are working on which has been in direct response to comments from visitors and patients.

“They have been telling us that the weather really hits this entranceway and it’s unpleasant to use. A new canopy and screens should help combat this.”

Meanwhile, staff at NHS Sheffield are launching a new drive to reduce medicine waste.

Unused prescription medicines cost the Trust more than £2m every year, the equivalent of 280 heart bypass operations, 2,800 cataract operations or more than 60 community nurses.

Dr Richard Oliver said: “Reducing the amount of waste on unnecessary prescriptions could save millions of pounds, which could be invested elsewhere in the health care system in Sheffield.

“As a GP I see the difference that can be made – one patient returned unused and unopened medicines which filled a bin bag and were valued at £5,500.”