Patients being treated in newly refurbished Emergency Department at the Luton and Dunstable University Hospital

From today, many patients will be treated in a brand new area of the Emergency Department (ED) at the Luton and Dunstable University Hospital (L&D).

This includes a brand new entrance and waiting area, a dedicated paediatric area and nine new major cubicles.

The bright, modern and spacious areas will make a huge difference to patient dignity and experience when attending ED, and will also allow staff to provide outstanding care in the very best environment.

In addition, a CT scanner has recently been installed within the department, thanks to a generous donation of £750,000 by a former member of staff, Dr Dhabuwala, through Bedfordshire Hospitals NHS Charity. Dr Dhabulwala originally joined the L&D in 1968 working in our newly built geriatric wards before moving to GU medicine in 1974 where he worked until his retirement in 2008.

The final phase of works will see the expansion of the department where there will be a further increase in capacity, including assessment and triage rooms and sensitively designed mental health care rooms. This work is due to be complete later this year.

Dr Ahmad Mchaourab, Consultant for Emergency Medicine and Redevelopment Lead at the L&D said: “Seeing the major improvements and refurbishments in the department over the last few months has been incredible. This work has allowed our staff to provide the best care for our patients in what can be their greatest time of need.”

Claire Barkell, CT Modality Manager at the L&D said: “Having the CT scanner located within the ED has helped us centralise care for patients coming to the department, and minimise the need for them to travel across the site. Once our staff training is complete, we will be scanning at least 40 patients a day in this machine.’

Melanie Banks, Director of Redevelopment and Strategic Planning at Bedfordshire Hospitals said: “Work to improve and upgrade the ED at the L&D has been much needed for quite some time. We are delighted to have delivered the next phase of this project which will provide a number of benefits to our patients, and it has been an absolute delight to see the excitement from the team as they move into this modern, long awaited facility.”