The Royal United Hospital will get £1.8 million to bring forward the purchase of state of the art new medical equipment to improve services for NHS patients, the Government announced yesterday.
The additional funding will be used by the RUH to carry out the planned replacement of medical equipment, IM&T equipment, and improvements to the hospital’s estate sooner than expected.
The money will primarily be used to buy a range of medical equipment across the medical and surgical specialties, as well as paediatrics and diagnostics.
The Trust has identified a range of medical equipment to be purchased, including neonatal cardiology ultrasound, mobile x-ray for theatres, cardiology monitors, dermatology cabinets, and an echocardiogram to provide better interpretation of diagnostics.
The money will also be used to improve the hospital’s environment for patients, staff and visitors through funding some redecoration and general repair work, and will also go towards purchasing replacing IM&T equipment.
The RUH is one of the many hospitals across England to receive funding for new operating theatres, A&E departments and other services as well as new scanners and ultrasound equipment as part of the overall £330 million allocation for England.
Health Secretary Andrew Lansley said: “I want NHS patients across Bath, north east Somerset and western Wiltshire to get the best care and treatment.
“We have saved money in central capital budgets this year which means we can spend more money on improving NHS facilities. This will mean that more patients in the area served by the Royal United Hospital will benefit from the latest world class equipment.”
The Trust’s Medical Director Tim Craft said: “We are delighted to have been given this additional funding.
“This will enable us to bring forward our programme of replacing essential medical equipment at the same time as carrying out improvements to the hospital environment, all of which will provide a better experience for our patients.”
The RUH serves a population of around 410,000 people for non-elective services and 320,000 people for elective and day case services. In 2010/11 65,944 inpatients and day cases were treated, along with 300,751 outpatients.
