£15m for rehab unit and A&E revamp at Morriston Hospital

Improvements to Morriston Hospital in Swansea will push ahead after the Welsh Assembly Government announced more than £15m worth of capital funding.

Health Minister, Lesley Griffiths, has approved £9.489m for a specialist rehabilitation unit at the hospital, which will include a new artificial limb and appliance centre. This is on top of £5.875m to fund the redevelopment of the emergency department.

The new Combined Specialist Rehabilitation Unit will house a rehabilitation engineering centre, orthotics and surgical appliances department, and a medical electronics unit. Accommodation will also include a range of consultation, examination and treatment rooms; fitting rooms for artificial limbs, appliances and wheelchairs; manufacturing facilities for artificial limbs and specialist wheelchairs; a gymnasium; equipment workshops and administration facilities and storage areas.

Investment in the emergency department will increase the number of patients able to be treated, providing an improved triage area with two additional rooms and an area for rapid assessment of arrivals by ambulance. It will also allow for a larger children’s A&E with its own waiting area and a larger general reception area.

Under the plans, there will also be an improved ambulance entrance to allow for better patient flow, and an improved internal layout.