Coronavirus: News from our partners – Some planned surgery to resume at The Robert Jones and Agnes Hunt Orthopaedic Hospital

News from our partners  The Robert Jones and Agnes Hunt Orthopaedic Hospital

Some planned surgery is set to resume at The Robert Jones and Agnes Hunt Orthopaedic Hospital from Tuesday next week (9 June 2020).

It represents the first significant step towards restoring routine services at the Oswestry-based hospital since all non-emergency elective work was suspended in late March.

The change is being made in line with national guidelines, with patients being prioritised based on clinical need.

As part of the regional response to the coronavirus pandemic, the Trust took on orthopaedic trauma work for Shropshire, Telford & Wrekin, and for North Wales. That work will continue in the short term, alongside the planned surgery which is now re-commencing.

Robert Jones and Agnes Hunt

Stacey Keegan, Acting Chief Executive, said:

“In making plans for this change, the safety of our patients and staff has been paramount.

“We will swab patients for covid-19 three days (72 hours) before surgery. Patients scheduled for elective surgery will be required to come to a drive-through swabbing site run by our Pre-Operative Assessment Team. This service will begin tomorrow (Saturday 6 June 2020) for the first patients who are scheduled for surgery on Tuesday. It will be by appointment only and will ONLY be for patients booked in for surgery.

“We will also ensure the separation of our different patient groups. Patients coming in for elective work will be admitted directly to Kenyon Ward, while patients attending for trauma surgery will be admitted via our Baschurch Unit.”

The specialist hospital also continues to work closely with its partners across the local health system in Shropshire and Telford & Wrekin on how it can began to expand our elective work further, again being guided by clinical need.

It will be contacting everyone affected as soon as possible about future treatment arrangements, so patients do not need to make contact about their surgery.

Stacey added:-

“If your symptoms related to your condition become worse, contact the consultant whose care you are under. Alternatively contact your GP for advice.”

For any further enquiries, please contact the Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS) on 01691 404606.