Same-day emergency care unit opens at hospital
Getty ImagesA revamped emergency care unit is set to open at a hospital in Kent on Tuesday as part of plans to improve patient flows.
The Same Day Emergency Care (SDEC) unit at the Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother Hospital in Margate is designed to allow specialist teams to assess, diagnose and treat some patients on the same day, reducing the need for admission to a hospital ward.
East Kent Hospitals University NHS Foundation Trust said patients with certain conditions will be able to return home the same day if it is clinically safe.
The unit is one of two SDEC facilities that have been developed in east Kent following the approval of £28.95m in funding from NHS England.
A second SDEC unit is expected to open later this year at William Harvey Hospital in Ashford.
Chief operating officer Dan Gibbs said the units provide "modern, improved environments that will enhance both staff experience and patient care".
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