More money for busy hospital UTC

More staff have been brought in to work at Spalding Urgent Treatment Centre (UTC) based at Johnson Hospital because it’s so busy.

Papers submitted to a meeting of the Lincolnshire Community Health NHS Trust, which currently runs the Johnson Hospital, says it’s busier than expected necessitating an update.
A total of £421,000 has been allocated for it and the UTC in Gainsborough.
The report says funding has been secured following a review of ‘safer staffing’, though the NHS Community Trust had not responded to The Voice’s question as to whether this was the £421.000 or completely separate.
The money will ‘allow Spalding to meet current demand’, the report states.
“Teams have recruited staff to attempt to meet their new demand model.
“We are also working with Lincolnshire Community Board colleagues to discuss same day primary care as this activity contributes a significant proportion of the overall increased UTC activity over the past year.”
“Gainsborough and Spalding UTCs have continued to experience activity that is significantly above our forecast, a dip from last year but last year included the increase in patients due to a strep outbreak.”
Users of UTCs in January rose to 14,377 from 13,971 the report states.
“Gainsborough and Spalding UTCs have continued to experience activity that is significantly above our forecast, a dip from last year but last year included the increase in patients due to a strep outbreak,” the report states.
Despite being busier than ever the Trust says there has been a ‘significant improvement which should be celebrated’ in people being assessed within 15 minutes of entering Spalding UTC.
The target is for 95 per cent to be seen in that period with the Trust saying the average across its areas altogether is just short of that having been as low as 80 per cent in December 2022.

A spokesman for the trust said: “Over the course of the past two years activity has increased at Spalding and Gainsborough Urgent Treatment Centres (UTCs) for several reasons including, but not limited to, increased patient population, patient choice and the ease of same day access.

“To appropriately manage this increased activity, Lincolnshire Community Health Services NHS Trust has secured £421,000 in funding allowing us to successfully recruit additional workforce above the existing model, in line with the increase in demand.”