Medical Director,Dr Gerry Skailes, pictured withChief Operating Officer, Faith Button.
An innovative new video clinic suite has opened at Royal Preston Hospital.
Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust has invested in the new facility after seeing a growth in popularity of video clinics among clinicians and patients since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Chief Operating Officer Faith Button said: “The new Virtual Suite underlines our commitment to building back better from the Covid-19 pandemic.
“We know that many of our patients have appreciated the convenience and safety offered by video and phone clinics and continuing to offer these services forms part of the Trust’s Covid recovery plan.
“Meeting patients remotely saves them time, reduces travel and has been a particular benefit to people who might normally have struggled to attend hospital due to work or caring commitments.
“Meanwhile, as clinical activity at the Trust increases, this development will free face-to-face clinic rooms and allow us to increase the number of patients we are able to see each day.”
Kidney patient Ryan Bamford has been happy with his experience of video clinics since early 2020.
He said: “I’ve been having video appointments since the pandemic started and at first I was a bit unsure because I wondered if they would definitely know I’m OK and if I could get everything checked.
“But the video appointments have been brilliant. I’m still going for my blood tests and you can test your own urine at home. It’s made me feel at ease that I’m still being checked as if I was going into the hospital.”
The new Virtual Suite, on the first floor of the Day Treatment Centre building, features 12 fully-equipped, soundproofed booths, making it easier than ever to speak to patients via video conferencing or phone call.
Consultant Nephrologist Prof Alex Woywodt was one of the first users of video clinics in the Trust and has welcomed the opening of the Virtual Suite.
He said: “Video clinics are here to stay and it is good news that Lancashire Teaching Hospitals has made this investment.
“Used appropriately, video clinics bring excellent benefits to doctors and their patients and this facility is a significant step forward in embedding the use of video in our future activity.”
Outpatients of Royal Preston Hospital and Chorley and South Ribble Hospital who have been offered a phone clinic but would prefer to be seen via video can speak with their clinician or call the Outpatient Call Centre on (01772) 524555.
