New Rehabilitation and Recovery Units help reduce health and care pressures across the county

Two Rehabilitation and Recovery Units have opened at The Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust, adding additional bed capacity on each hospital site (Princess Royal Hospital, Telford and the Royal Shrewsbury Hospital) for people who no longer need to be in an acute hospital bed but can’t be supported safely at home. The care at the units will be delivered by Shropshire Community Health NHS Trust.

The opening of these new units will help to alleviate pressure at both hospitals, reduce emergency department overcrowding, ambulance handover delays and corridor care reliance. The additional capacity will also reduce delays for patients awaiting planned operations by freeing up inpatient beds reserved for post-operation recovery.

The new units will provide general rehabilitation or specialist rehabilitation, for example for people who have had a stroke or experienced loss of mobility or function due to trauma. The purpose of the units is to ‘bridge the gap’ between hospital and home, providing appropriate care for people who need support to recover from illness or injury after a stay in hospital.

Dr Nick White, Chief Medical Officer for NHS Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin, said: “I am delighted to see the Rehabilitation and Recovery Units open for our patients to help boost their recovery. The units will alleviate the pressure experienced in the acute hospitals, particularly within the winter months, helping to reduce A&E and ambulance waiting times.

“The Rehabilitation and Recovery Units will create a seamless flow through acute and community care, for those who can’t be supported safely at home, but don’t need to be in an acute hospital bed. The units will help improve patient experience and manage the ongoing demand for beds in Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin, by freeing up hospital beds for those that really need them.”

Clair Hobbs, Director of Nursing, Clinical Delivery and Workforce for Shropshire Community Health NHS Trust, commented: “We are excited and proud to be working with our system partners to deliver this innovative new service.  Everyone has worked incredibly hard to get everything in place for our patients and it’s been fantastic to see the service already being put to good use and delivering quality care across the two sites.”

The Rehabilitation and Recovery Units will be delivered by a multidisciplinary team of nursing, pharmacists, occupational therapists, physiotherapists, speech and language therapists, dietitians and doctors working together in a seamless way to provide the best possible care. Should a patient deteriorate, there will be rapid access back to the acute hospital facilities.