A new surgical hub in west Cumbria will be 'fantastic for our population' as it looks to treat 10 per cent more patients within the first year.
The hub, based at the West Cumberland Infirmary, is a dedicated space for undertaking large volumes of low complexity surgical work that will operate 50 weeks of the year, six days a week.
There has been a build-up in the elective surgery waiting list due to a number of factors which includes Covid-19 and the county's ageing population.
Dr Adrian Clements, medical director for North Cumbria Integrated Care, said: "Why do we need to do it? It's because we've got really long waiting lists. We're currently not serving the needs of our population.
"We've got waiting lists that are just not acceptable. So we have to do things differently. We can't carry on to deliver care in the way that we're delivering it. We have a duty to the population to become more efficient."
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The hospital trust is hoping to be named as the region's second accredited surgical hub which requires care to be smooth from start to finish.
It also means that they'll be expected to be treating patients 85 per cent of the time that the hub is operating, from 8am through to 6pm.
This will play a role in tackling the trust's waiting list backlog and bring it down by enabling them to see 10 per cent more patients within the first year and a further 30 per cent after this.
Dr Clements said: "What they've shown, when they have set up accredited hubs elsewhere, is that in the first year that you tend to be able to push through 10 per cent more patients.
"And after a year or so, you might be treating 30 per cent more patients. So, if you can treat 30 per cent more patients using the same resource, who wouldn't want that?"
They will be able to perform surgeries on fingers, wrists, ears, nose, and throat, as well as low complexity abdominal surgeries too.
Over time, the trust will grow the team that will help to deliver care at the West Cumberland Surgical Hub which will make it more resilient and less reliant on bringing in other teams.
Dr Clements added: "I think that would be good for West Cumberland, it will be good for the trust, and it will be fantastic for our population because we'll be able to get more efficient care and we should be able to drive down our waiting lists."
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