"We want to revolutionise how healthcare works"- Minister on extending out of hours access to appointments, including in the West Midlands and Black Country
Patients in Cannock, Stourbridge, Kidderminster and Birmingham will be amongst those to benefit from extended hours at community based diagnostic centres.
The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) has announced checks, tests and scans will be done out of hours at 100 community-based diagnostic centres (CDC) nationwide which are now open 12 hours a day seven days a week.
They include the Corbett Hospital in Stourbridge CDC, Guest Hospital CDC in Dudley; Cannock Chase CDC in Cannock; Kidderminster Treatment Centre and Washwood Heath CDC in Birmingham. CDCs can provide a range of tests including MRI and CT scans, echocardiography and phlebotomy services.
Some 7.2 million CDC tests and scans have been delivered since July 2024, but the DHSC wants to increase access to health services and speeding up diagnosis for thousands of patients.
As well as community hospitals, shopping centres and university campuses are among the venues closer to people’s homes where CDC's are based.
Health Secretary Wes Streeting said the Government is “determined to offer healthcare that fits around working people’s lives and not the other way around”.
He said: “From early morning MRI scans to late evening blood tests, we’re meeting patients where they need it most by extending the operating hours for community diagnostic centres and putting patients first."
Mr Streeting said the Government’s 10-year health plan is “revolutionising how healthcare works” and the measures are helping to bring care closer to the community.
Diane Wake, group chief executive at The Dudley Group NHS Foundation Trust, said: “We recognise how important it is that people are able to fit their appointments around their busy lives and we are grateful for the outstanding work of our staff who work in those centres.”
“We are incredibly privileged that since 2022 our CDC, the Corbett Outpatient Centre and the Guest Outpatient Centre have been open seven days a week for12 hours a day.”
Professor Meghana Pandit, NHS England national medical director, said: “We know people are living incredibly busy lives and it’s vital NHS care reflects that.
“The services provided by CDCs enable people to receive the all-clear or a diagnosis at a time and location that suits them, whether before a school drop off or after a work shift, and extending their opening hours means more people are being seen more quickly.”
The Government’s plan for change is backed by more than £6 billion of additional capital investment to improve capacity for elective, diagnostic, and urgent care services over five years, with more than £600 million capital funding committed for 2025/26 to transform diagnostic services.
This includes funding up to five additional CDCs in 2025/26 and extending opening hours for all CDCs at evenings and at weekends.
