Sutton hospital trust awarded more than £1.5m for better discharge facilities

The Department of Health and Social Care funding has awarded £1.5 million to Kings Mill and £70,000 to its sister hospital in Newark for new upgraded discharge lounges, which are designed to speed up access to care and help cut urgent and emergency care waiting times.

Five of the lounges are already open in midlands, with 42 new or upgraded discharge lounges opening across England in total.

The lounges are for patients being discharged that day, but awaiting for medication or transportation, freeing up beds and reduce waits for patients waiting to be admitted from A&E.

Nationally, the new facilities are backed by part of a £50m package which was announced by the Health and Social Care Secretary Steve Barclay in January to help free up hospital beds and cut down on waiting times for patients ahead of next winter.

The discharge lounges will improve patient experience by creating more space in hospitals, offering a more comfortable environment with TVs, hot meals and discharge lounge nurses to attend to people’s needs.

Five of the lounges are already open at Leicester General Hospital, the Queen’s Medical Centre in Nottingham, Birmingham Heartlands Hospital, the Good Hope Hospital in Birmingham, the Princess Royal, Worksop’s Bassetlaw Hospital, and Kettering General Hospital.

Denise Wharmby, urgent and emergency care matron at Sherwood Forest Hospitals NHS Trust, which runs King’s Mill and Newark hospitals, said: “There is a lot of evidence to show patients recover better at home once their treatment in hospital is complete.

“Waiting in the more relaxed and friendly environment of the discharge lounge also gives specialist staff the opportunity to help prepare patients to re-adjust as they prepare for life out of hospital.”

Steven Jenkins, SFH divisional general manager of urgent and emergency care, said: “Currently, only a very small percentage of trust discharges can be accommodated in the discharge lounge in King’s Mill.

“Greater capacity will significantly increase the percentage of patients who can transfer to the lounge, rather than occupying much needed beds once they are ready to be discharged.

“Making every bed count really is key.”