Day Procedure Unit at the Lagan Valley Hospital wins award for 'outstanding results'

Since the Regional Centre opened its doors in October 2020, the team has carried out 6,000 priority procedures, even during the pandemic.

The Elective Care Management in the Department of Health has initiated a monthly award for teams who have delivered outstanding results and the DPC team is one of its first recipients.

Before Covid struck, the Lagan Valley DPC had been identified as the Regional Day Case facility for non-urgent surgical procedures. However, prior to its opening, the pandemic hit and there was concern that throughout the Region, many urgent cancer procedures/investigations were being cancelled due to staffing issues and the requirement to increase ICU capacity.This prompted the staff in the DPC to reconsider their work and as a result, all available theatre lists were converted to priority lists that would be available to the Region for appropriate urgent procedures.

Assistant Director for Elective surgery Chris Allam said: “I am extremely proud of the dedication of all the staff who have worked tirelessly to review and improve systems for patients. They really are at the heart of everything we do.”

The Chief Executive of the South Eastern Trust, Roisin Coulter added, “The Day Procedure Centre at the Lagan Valley Hospital is testimony to the extraordinary amount of work and dedication that all staff have demonstrated since the unit opened.”