Unit helping patients go home

TWO new discharge wards at Mount Gould Hospital have been officially opened – helping to ease pressure on beds at Derriford Hospital.

Saltram and Lopes wards are part of the new discharge assessment unit being run jointly by University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust (UHP) and Livewell Southwest.

The wards will allow medically fit patients to be discharged from Derriford to a facility that is equipped to support their recovery and ultimately their return home, all with the aim of supporting people to live independently for longer.

The opening of the unit has been made possible thanks to £5m funding from NHS England, as well as collaborative working between UHP, Livewell Southwest, NHS Devon Integrated Care Board, Plymouth City Council and a number of community partners, including Age UK and Herts Urgent Care (formally Devon Doctors).

Jo Beer, chief operating officer at UHP, said: “We are delighted to have opened the new discharge assessment unit at Mount Gould.

“This means we can give every patient the opportunity to return to independence following a period of acute ill health and hospitalisation, as well as promote home as the preferred discharge destination.

“This new unit also releases bed capacity at UHP to provide space for care and treatment for patients waiting for elective and urgent care. It’s a new way of working for UHP and an opportunity to strengthen working relationships with our Livewell and Plymouth City Council colleagues for the benefit of patient care.”