£2.4m endoscopy unit at Airedale Hospital set to open in summer (From Bradford Telegraph and Argus)

£2.4m endoscopy unit at Airedale Hospital set to open in summer

9:00am Wednesday 20th February 2013 in News

Airedale General Hospital’s new £2.4 million endoscopy unit is on track to open this summer.

Building work, being carried out by Willmot Dixon, is expected to be complete by the end of June and an opening is scheduled for the following month.

The new expanded unit is designed to cater for increased demand due to the national bowel screening programme and awareness campaigns for bowel, bladder and lung cancer.

And demand will rise further from next year when the lower age for bowel cancer screening drops from 55 to 50.

The new unit will offer same-sex facilities where necessary, such as dedicated male and female waiting areas for when patients have changed into gowns.

And there will be a meeting and teaching room with audio visual equipment to stream video from procedure rooms during training sessions.

Julie Blackburn, sister on the endoscopy unit, said: “We are really pleased with how the new unit is developing – we are about a third of the way through the building work.

“It will provide patients and staff with facilities that address privacy and dignity issues and are fit for delivering high quality care in the 21st century.

“It will also help us to grow our business for the hospital, deal with the increase in demand for our services and allow patients to be seen more quickly following referral from their GP.”

Last Christmas an appeal was launched to raise more than £60,000 for new endoscopy equipment.

Items needed include an endoscopy video processor, which helps to diagnose patients more quickly and provides a clearer image for the clinician, and entonox hoses which allow procedures to be carried out without the need for sedation.

To make a donation, either text ENDO60 followed by £ and the amount to 70070 or visit: justgiving.com/AiredaleEndoscopyChristmasAppeal.