Our Medical Division is just a week away from opening a new Respiratory Support Unit (RSU), which will give acutely unwell patients immediate admission so they can benefit from the specialist care they need more quickly.

The new unit will open next Monday, 28th October and will be located within Ward 5C. 

General Manager, Dominic Bryan, said: “This is a huge step forward as we work towards having a complete Acute Respiratory Care Unit which will be developed as part of the wider reconfiguration programme in the long-term.”

The pathway and more information about the new unit

The unit will provide immediate access to enhanced care for respiratory patients who meet the RSU criteria (including selected level 2 patients, equivalent to HDU). These patients will benefit from closer monitoring, specialist respiratory input and access to care from the wider respiratory multidisciplinary team.

Admission to the RSU can be done directly from the emergency department as per the RSU criteria and pathway document (see below). These patients will receive an increased nursing staffing ratio of one nurse to two RSU patients.

There will also be a focused input from physiotherapy, occupational therapy, palliative care, psychology and pharmacy staff. Specialist equipment such as monitoring, workstations, chairs and NIV machines in line with British Thoracic Society guidelines will be used within this specialist area.

The RSU will be introduced in a phased approach with phase one including the provision of four RSU beds. Phase two will see this increase to six RSU beds.

**ED, Acute, Patient Flow and ICU/Critical Care teams please note below**

Please see the full pathway document for more information including:

• RSU aims
• Admission pathway
• Admission criteria
• Procedure relating to unavailability of RSU beds
• Patients not suitable for RSU
• Discharge from RSU

Please contact the following colleagues if you have any comments or queries:

• Dr Steven Thomas – Clinical Lead and Respiratory Consultant
• Dr Karthik Viswanathan – Clinical Director
• Louise Taylor – Respiratory Matron
• Dominic Bryan – General Manager

Some of our respiratory consultants are pictured at an out-of-work event. Pictured clockwise from bottom left: 

• Dr Muhammad Naveed Khan
• Dr Liaquat Ali
• Dr Andrew Hardy
• Dr Wang Yng Lim
• Dr Anneka Biswas
• Dr Steven Thomas
• Dr Basel Sakka
• Dr Simon Ting
• Dr Charlotte Spencer