Prince Philip Hospital to maintain emergency medical and minor injuries care

Prince Philip Hospital will continue to be a pivotal hospital for the people of Llanelli and the wider health board. It will provide care and assessment for medical emergencies, minor injuries and also highly specialised planned (elective) services, as is currently the case.

Hywel Dda Health Board’s preferred option for the hospital is to provide high quality care for all those of patients who should currently attend the Llanelli hospital in an improved way.

It wants to bring medical emergency patients (eg patients with strokes, diabetes, infections and asthma attacks) directly into the hospital through an Emergency Medical Admission Unit. This unit would be consultant led and available 24 hours, seven days a week. The plans would improve the assessment and management for the most unwell medical patients.

Dr Phil Kloer said: “This is an improvement for medically unwell patients as they will come directly into the hospital, bypassing the walk-in unit and with only one assessment as opposed to two. They will therefore get much quicker access to a physician for the treatment that they need.”

The majority of emergency medical patients come into the hospital via the ambulance service or by referral from GPs and this would continue under the new proposal.

Alongside this, the current A&E Department would be more appropriately called a Local Accident Centre. Skilled emergency nurse practitioners would provide care for all patients who currently attend with minor injuries and illnesses (cuts, sprains, very minor burns). This service would be provided 24 hours per day, seven days a week, and nurses would be trained to make assessments and transfer if necessary.

Dr Kloer said: “We want to work closely with local GPs, local people and representative groups to explain when it is appropriate to attend Prince Philip Hospital and when it may be more clinically appropriate to attend a different unit or be transferred elsewhere.”

The health board also wants to provide new services at the Llanelli hospital, including a dementia care unit and short stay unit, and develop it as a centre of excellence for orthopaedics and breast cancer care.

To read more about the health board’s proposals and to feedback your views, please visit the online resource at www.hywelddahb.wales.nhs.uk/Consultation, or attend an event in your area:

Public meetings:

Call in throughout the day to find out more at our drop in session