Hospital plans temporary wards to ease overcrowding
BBCHospital bosses have applied for permission to create temporary wards to relieve severe overcrowding.
Great Western Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, which runs the trust's main centre in Swindon, says mounting pressure there is "primarily driven by capacity restrictions".
The application states the three proposed buildings would be used for A&E services and as general wards, but not for intensive care or high-dependency units.
The trust said the mobile units were intended to improve patient flow, facilitate safer staffing levels and eliminate "the reliance on corridor care" at the hospital.
According to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, the trust said it opted for temporary ward space to alleviate immediate pressures while allowing time to find longer-term solutions.
The planning application submitted to Wiltshire Council revealed that bed occupancy is consistently at 98-100%, which exceeds the safe operational threshold.
It added the NHS Trust regularly operate at 104% bed occupancy.
"This is exacerbated by the comparatively low bed provision per population within the trust's catchment area," the application reads.
"An increase in emergency demand, including a rise in ambulance arrivals and Emergency Department attendance, has increased the strain on the hospital."
The trust warns of "direct clinical risks" as a result, such as prolonged waiting times, admission delays, and patients being treated in "inappropriate clinical settings".
"It is therefore critical that these operational risks are alleviated through the provision of the proposed temporary additional ward space," it added.
The plans are due to be considered by Wiltshire Council's local planning authority at a later date.
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