Lymington New Forest and Hythe hospitals included in NHS £27m drive into shortening diagnosis and waiting times

LYMINGTON and Hythe hospitals have become trailblazing diagnosis hubs as part of a £27m regional drive by the NHS to cut treatment waiting times for illnesses including cancer and heart disease.

An £11.5m share of the funding will go towards improving and increasing the services available at the community diagnostic centre (CDC) at Lymington, billed as one of the first in the country.

The NHS hopes the cash injection will help the town’s hospital to deliver an additional 145,000 diagnostic tests, scans and check-ups per year for people in the New Forest.

Improvements will also be made to smaller CDCs at Hythe and Romsey hospitals, plus the Royal South Hants in Southampton, to provide a range of tests to help reduce pressure on local acute facilities.

An NHS spokesperson said Lymington was the main diagnostic centre in the Southampton and New Forest area.

Dr Rachel Anderson, clinical director at Southern Health NHS Foundation Trust which runs Lymington and Hythe hospitals, said: “We are delighted to be providing one of the first community diagnostic centres in the UK.

“CDCs represent a very important development for our local communities across Hampshire.

“The hubs will improve access to diagnostic tests, meaning patients will receive care faster and closer to home, and will help diagnose health conditions earlier, quicker, and more accurately.”

She added: “Delivering the CDC with our NHS partners means that the links between all of our services have strengthened and grown, helping us to deliver more joined-up care.”

According to the NHS, the existing diagnostic centres at Lymington, Southampton and Portsmouth have so far delivered just short of 400,000 additional tests throughout the south-east.

Analysis of NHS figures by private company Health Compare showed there was a need for action.

It found in August there were 78,584 people on NHS waiting lists within 15 miles of the SO41 postcode, which includes Lymington.

That is 12,851 more people than this time last year – an increase of 18.6%.

There were 25,851 who have been waiting for 18 weeks or more to see the NHS.

Researchers found the average patient had to wait 16.6 weeks to see an NHS specialist compared with just 15.9 weeks at this time last year.

A spokesperson for the NHS said: “People across Hampshire will see improved access to help diagnose life-threatening conditions such as cancer and heart problems faster, thanks to new funding for community diagnostic centres.

“The creation of new and expanded community diagnostic centres will help to reduce how long local people are waiting to access vital tests, scans and checks.

“These centres are based in easy reach of their local communities and many services will be open seven days a week.”

From a £27m budget locally, the NHS is also using £4.7m to create a new CDC in Andover, due to open in 2023, and is ploughing the remaining £11m into improving the CDC at St Mary’s Hospital in Portsmouth.