Opening of Grantham and District Hospital 24 hour Urgent Treatment Centre (UTC)
It has been announced that the new 24/7 Urgent Treatment Centre (UTC) at Grantham and District Hospital will open on Tuesday 31 October 2023.
This will replace the hospital’s A&E Department, which since 2016 has only been open from 8am to 6.30pm each day due to previous severe staffing challenges.
As you may be aware, this service change comes as a result of a public consultation led by Lincolnshire Clinical Commissioning Group (now Lincolnshire Integrated Care Board) into four acute services which took place last year, known as the Acute Services Review (ASR).
From Tuesday 31 October, patients will be able to walk in to the new UTC 24 hours a day, and access bookable appointments available 24 hours per day via the 111 service.
The UTC will provide an extensive range of assessment and treatment that meets the needs of the local population, offering additional diagnostic capabilities and enhanced staffing compared to other UTCs in the county.
These urgent care services can treat a wide range of conditions which are not critical or life threatening such as sprains and strains, suspected broken limbs and feverish illness in adults and children. The UTC will also provide access to X-ray, CT and MRI scanners.
It will be backed up with a new integrated community and acute medical service (focussing on frailty) provided jointly with Lincolnshire Community Health Services NHS Trust (LCHS), and due to launch later this year.
In addition to the services offered at the UTC, clinical assessment and stabilisation will be undertaken for any patients who need to be transferred onward to other hospitals for their care.
ULHT is now embarking upon a comprehensive communication exercise, to ensure that patients and the public of Grantham and the surrounding areas are fully informed about the service change and how to access the care they need, when they need it.
