Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham has officially opened a new facility at Stepping Hill Hospital in Stockport which helps get patients home quickly and safely, with any support they need to continue living independently.
The new transfer hub, one of the first of its kind in the country, helps ensures patients don’t need to stay in a hospital bed longer than they need. As well as benefitting the patient both physically and psychologically, this also helps free-up beds for seriously ill patients being admitted into hospital.
The transfer hub is the result of a partnership between local NHS organisations and the council, known as Stockport Together. It includes a transfer team of around 60 staff, which includes discharge co-ordinators, social workers and ward trackers, who work alongside Age UK placement officers, wellness & independence officers, continuing healthcare nurse assessors and mental health liaison nurses. A transfer lounge is also part of the facility, where people can comfortably wait for transport once they have left the ward. The hub is currently seeing around 20 patients each day.
Trust Chair Adrian Belton said, “This is a great example of local health and social care services working ever more closely together to ensure patients receive the right care in the right place. We were delighted to have Andy Burnham officially open the new facility, hear from patients who have already benefited from this service, and thank individuals and teams from all the different organisations who have helped make this possible.”
Mayor Andy Burnham said “I was very honoured to open this great facility, which is exactly what we want to see more of; health and social care services working together to promote people’s independence and getting them home and safe as soon as they can.”
Stockport Together is a partnership between Stockport NHS Foundation Trust (Stepping Hill Hospital and community health services), Stockport Council, Stockport Clinical Commissioning Group, Viaduct Care (a federation representing Stockport GPs) and Pennine Care (mental health services).