Dorset County Hospital (DCH)NHS Foundation Trust has opened its newly refurbished Outpatient Assessment Centre at South Walks House in Dorchester. This clinically led model of care provides health on the high street for outpatient appointments and diagnostics testing resulting in:

• Reduced waiting times
• Patients receiving the right care and treatment more quickly
• Clinicians across different specialties can work together to find the best treatment options for patients
• People are signposted to the services they need on the day, so they can see the healthcare professionals they need at the same appointment
• Patients can access a wealth of health and wellbeing information and advice on-site to support their treatment
• Alleviates pressures on the main DCH clinical site

DCH (along with University Hospitals Dorset NHS Foundation Trust and Dorset HealthCare University NHS Foundation Trust) is a healthcare partner of the Dorset Integrated Care System (ICS) working with two local councils, other NHS services and the community and voluntary sector to address local health, wellbeing, quality, and financial challenges across the county.

In November 2021 a pop-up Outpatient Assessment Centre was created operating out of the ground floor of the former council offices in South Walks House which had been unoccupied since the start of the COVID pandemic due to the consolidation of the council’s office requirements. This consolidation provided the NHS with a unique opportunity to re-purpose the space as it was in a prime location, close to both the high street and the hospital with excellent transport links and facilities, was convenient for patients and staff, and ensured a positive experience by avoiding the need to visit an acute hospital setting unless necessary. This temporary measure to tackle NHS waiting lists was created as part of a partnership between NHS Dorset, Dorset HealthCare, Active Dorset and LiveWell Dorset.

The Trust received more than £14million from the NHS England Elective Recovery and Community Diagnostics Programme to transform two floors of South Walks House into permanent clinical space after signing a 20-year lease with Dorset Council. This funding has been used to expand and enhance the centre. There are now two floors of dedicated clinical space that will allow the Trust to run more outpatient clinics and offer diagnostics appointments (such as x-rays and scans), as well as day case local anaesthetic procedures and general health and wellbeing services.