February 16, 2021 10.55 am This story is over 37 months old

Work on new Grimsby A&E to start next month

It will temporarily limit car park access
An artist's impression of the new A&E facility at Diana, Princess of Wales Hospital in Grimsby. | Illustration: P+HS architect / NLaG
By Local Democracy Reporter

The next phase of work on a new A&E facility at the Diana Princess of Wales Hospital in Grimsby will start next month.

Work on the new 2,255 sqm area will begin at the end of March, and the hospital will have to make minor changes while it is being completed.

A section of the main car park will be closed off when main construction starts to ensure all staff, visitors and patients are safe, with all diversions being clearly signposted.

This will mean that fewer spaces will be available in the hospital car park, and people are being encouraged to arrange alternative forms of transport if possible.

Anyone who has access to public transport or can be dropped off at the hospital is being asked to do so, allowing car park priority for those who cannot.

As well as this, the current bus shelter will be relocated next to the clock tower, and the new route will be operational from Monday, February 22.

The new bus route, accompanying the relocated shelters, will be in operation from February 22. | Photo: NLaG

The car park deck is due to finish in September, and the new A&E facility will be ready in early 2022.

The development is part of a wider project thanks to almost £55 million of funding from NHS England and the Department of Health and Social Care, with another A&E department being built in Scunthorpe too.

In Grimsby, the new area is being built out from the current A&E building, freeing up space for some new acute assessment units.

Once completed, the new building will allow for patients to be seen more quickly by specialists in a wider range of conditions, without the need to admit them to a ward.

Director of estates and facilities and senior responsible officer (SRO) at Northern Lincolnshire and Goole NHS Foundation Trust, Jug Johal said: “The new department will ensure that we are able to offer the highest levels of patient care and service both now and in the future.

“Patients will be able to begin their care and treatment more quickly, in an environment which meets the needs of both them and our clinical teams.”

New CT Scanner “like being in a spaceship”

The new CT Scanner at Diana, Princess of Wales Hospital has been getting rave reviews. | Photo: NLaG

Diana Princess of Wales Hospital has also announced that over 650 patients have been treated in the new Coastal CT Suite.

The £1.6 million purpose-built facility opened on Wednesday, January 6 and has been designed to keep patients at ease, with specialist lighting and other privacy measures in place.

It creates detailed images of the inside of the body, helping to pinpoint and monitor any conditions that patients may have.

The first patient to use the new scanner was Emma Mathias from Grimsby, who said: “The suite is so high tech and futuristic – it was like being in a spaceship! 

“It was really clean and a nice environment to be in, especially with the cloud lights on the ceiling and the photos on the wall to help you relax. 

“The staff were really excited and proud to be scanning their first patient. They were welcoming and explained everything they were doing.”