PRU service to ease pressure on London’s hospitals

London’s Air Ambulance, London Ambulance Service and Barts Health NHS Trust have remodelled their Physician Response Unit (PRU) service to enable around 50 per cent more patients to be seen each day.

The PRU’s emergency staff will respond and will enable the treatment of a wider range of illnesses and injuries at the scene of emergency compared to ambulance crews which take many emergency patients to hospital. By enabling patients to remain at home, the PRU cuts treatment times by hours and focuses on improving patients’ experience compared to the normal route of being admitted to hospital wards.

Dr Tony Joy, clinical lead for the PRU, said: “This is an exciting time for emergency care in London. The PRU is an innovative solution to help us respond to the very high demand on health services. The redevelopment will mean longer operational hours, and closer working between all aspects of healthcare provision. It turns emergency care on its head so that emergency patients are seen in the community by senior clinicians, enabling early treatment and access to alternative pathways without the need to go to hospital.

“It will help reduce pressure on emergency departments by reducing admissions and will support London Ambulance Service by reducing the need for ambulance conveyances. We hope that this model of care will be rolled out throughout the UK one day.”

Malik Ramadhan, of Barts Health NHS Trust, added: “It is vital that we look at innovative ways of caring for the ever increasing number of emergency patients coming through the doors of A&Es. Just as we are now able to safely book some A&E patients in for a next-day scan, saving them from an unnecessary overnight stay in hospital, it is often more favorable to patients to receive the care they need without having to come to hospital at all. This also keeps hospital beds free for those most urgently in need and operations running on time which is better for patients and more cost-effective for the NHS.”