A £4.6 million cash boost has been secured to build urgently-needed hospital facilities for mid Essex patients

Broomfield Hospital in Chelmsford is celebrating after the Eastern Regional Office confirmed the money was being made available to help cut waiting lists.

Mid Essex Hospital Services NHS Trust submitted a bid for the cash in January

The Trust's chief executive Andrew Pike today said: "This extra money is tremendous news for the Trust and for local people because the additional theatres and new facilities will mean that we can treat more patients and reduce waiting times."

The money will be used to build a new 20-bed, three-theatre day surgery unit, which will be located above the new cardiac centre.

It will also fund a new operating theatre in the St Andrew's Centre for burns and plastic surgery and better facilities for the new MRI and CT scanners, which are to be installed at the hospital later this year.

The old, smaller day surgery unit will be refurbished to provide an endoscopy suite as a temporary measure until it can move into new accommodation as part of the major redevelopment of Broomfield Hospital.

Published Thursday, March 7, 2002