Clinical hubs benefitting patients and reducing demand on A&E

More than 1,800 people in Kent avoided a trip to A&E this winter thanks to a pilot project of two emergency care co-ordination centres.

The two care co-ordination hubs, set up as trials by Kent Community Health NHS Foundation Trust (KCHFT), South East Coast Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust (SECAmb) and acute hospital providers, will now be extended, after delivering positive early results.

The hubs are staffed by frailty and urgent care clinicians from KCHFT, with advanced paramedic practitioners from SECAmb and emergency care consultants and advanced clinical practitioners from East Kent Hospitals University NHS Foundation Trust and Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust.

The combined teams remotely monitor patients in live ambulance calls, using a live dashboard and removing them from the queue where possible, to help them benefit from more appropriate care, including referring them into GP and home treatment services.

The west Kent hub in Paddock Wood has helped more than 1,000 patients avoid a trip to A&E. In Ashford, more than 800 patients, who would otherwise have been taken to A&E, have been able to avoid the journey.

West Kent clinical hub during December 2023

The hubs will continue, with a new site in Thanet introduced in February to support Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother Hospital (QEQM).

Dr Shelagh O’Riordan, Consultant Geriatrician for KCHFT, said: “By reviewing appropriate 999 calls and supporting ambulance crews at the scene of an incident, the hubs are helping to reduce pressure on A&E by guiding patients to other services, with the focus on supporting people to get the right care, in the right place, at the right time, by the right clinician.

“We know emergency care is under pressure, but there are a number of services which could be more appropriate for patients, particularly for our elderly and frail population. This project means we can match patients to an alternative service where they can be seen sooner and could avoid a trip to hospital completely.

“It’s better for patients and frees up emergency care teams to focus on those who need their expertise.”

Dr Jonathan Bryant, GP and East Kent Health and Care Partnership Medical Director said: "The hubs provide an excellent opportunity to make sure people receive the care they need. They will allow more people to be treated in their own homes without needing to be taken to hospital, allowing more joined up working between all the different teams providing healthcare in an emergency setting.

“There will be quicker access to a greater level of expertise, leading to better decision-making right at the first point of contact. I know where this way of working has been implemented in other areas, the results have been very positive."

For more information email:
East Kent Health and Care Partnership on: kentchft.eastkenthcp@nhs.net
West Kent Health and Care Partnership on: mtw-tr.westkentjpmo@nhs.net