Press Release

July 6, 2005 

Laying foundations for the £20 million Day Treatment Centre  

A multi-million pound treatment centre set to reduce waiting times for routine operations in Burton will move a step closer as foundation work begins. 

The state-of-the-art Day Treatment Centre, which will have six operating theatres, two treatment rooms, six pre-operative assessment areas and 27 recovery beds, will enable Queen’s Hospital to carry out an extra 13,000 operations every year. 

Burton Hospitals NHS Trust’s Chairman Jim Morrison will be joined by Nations Healthcare Chief Executive Officer Walter Kmet and South Staffordshire Primary Care Trust (PCT) Chairman Alex Fox to lay the first stone on Thursday (July 14). 

It is hoped that the modern fast-track centre will open its doors to patients by summer next year. 

The centre is set to cut waiting times by providing dedicated day surgery which will enable the main hospital theatres to concentrate on more complex and urgent procedures. It will also treat up to 17, 000 outpatients each year. 

Patients who undergo surgery at the centre will return home in the same day. 

David Harding, Acting Chief Executive of Burton Hospitals NHS Trust, said: “This expansion in capacity will allow us to treat more patients more quickly in a quality environment that will improve the experience for the patient. We believe the public of Burton will reap the benefits. 

“This modern fast-track centre is one of the biggest and most important investments in the history of this hospital.” 

Planning permission for the centre was granted in September last year. The Trust has pledged to work with East Staffordshire Borough Council to ensure that minimum disruption is caused to residents living near the hospital. 

ISSUED ON BEHALF OF BURTON HOSPITALS NHS TRUST BY M&M. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT MATT FORSTER ON 01829 752751.