Great Western Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust has shared details of a new mobile diagnostic service bringing X-rays, ultrasound, invitro diagnostics and urinary tract infection testing directly to patients in the community, with aims to avoid unnecessary journeys and admissions to hospital.
A pilot of the community diagnostic vehicle has reportedly helped reclaim 203 acute hospital bed days, saved 332 hours of patient waiting time in ED, released 121 hours of ambulance time, and saved over £104,000 in avoided conveyances and investigations.
The vehicle is a result of a collaboration with partners including South Western Ambulance NHS Foundation Trust, and is provided by Sovereign Talents in partnership with FujiFilm. According to GWH, radiology support workers travel in the vehicle to patients in the community, using a portable X-ray machine and other diagnostic equipment to identify conditions like fractures.
So far 53 patients have been supported in their own homes, the trust details, with 91 percent avoiding a hospital visit and none subsequently admitted within 30 days. Following the pilot, funding has now been secured to continue the service through November, with plans to expand it to include eligible patients registered with a Bath and North East Somerset, Swindon and Wiltshire GP.
GWH deputy COO Rob Presland talked about the benefits for patients, and particularly those who might be more vulnerable or frail, in avoiding hospital visits. “What is particularly exciting is the potential for this model to grow,” he said. “We have seen in a relatively short period how bringing diagnostics closer to home can benefit patients while freeing up capacity elsewhere in the health and care system. Securing funding to continue the service through November gives us an opportunity to build on what we have learned, reach more patients and explore how this innovative and forward-thinking approach to care can support communities across a wider area.”
Wider trend: The shift of care to the community
HTN was joined by a panel of digital leaders to discuss the NHS 10 Year Health Plan, looking at building the right digital foundations to deliver on ambitions, local approaches to national objectives, system transformation, challenges, progress and the road ahead. Our panel included Ravinder Kaur Sahota, group CIO at The Dudley Group and Sandwell and West Birmingham; Kelvyn Hipperson, executive CIO, Royal Cornwall Hospitals and Cornwall Partnership; and Graham Brown, Marketing Director at Redcentric.
The newly formed West and North London ICB ten year clinically led strategy has proposed an additional £360 million recurrent investment in proactive, community-based care and mental health by 2028/29, adding to a £12 billion annual spend for the 4.5 million residents across the region. Ten principles underpin the strategy, including the £360 million to be invested in proactive, preventative, community-based care, improving outcomes, reducing avoidable demand, putting the system on “sustainable financial footing” by 2035/36, and investing in “what works”, based on evidence as a learning health system.
The UK government has designated £343 million to the expansion of community mental health support services, with up to 159 new NHS mental health centres to open from Autumn 2026. In particular, the funding will support the development of 59 new mental health emergency departments offering same-day specialist support for those in crisis. Trusts are being allocated £156 million for the 59 new emergency departments, with £187 million allocated for the initial 100 new community-based mental health centres, the government explains. Locations include Addenbrooke’s Hospital, Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital, The Royal London Hospital, Chesterfield Royal Hospital, and Queen’s Medical Centre, Nottingham.
