New front door to Emergency Care opens at St James’s Hospital in December

We have been making some changes to improve the layout of the wider Emergency Department to enhance movement through the department and provide a better patient experience overall. To complement this, the front door is moving to be in a better position to receive and direct patients.

The new front door to the Emergency Department will open from 13 December 2023. After this date, accessing the Emergency Department using the old entrance will not be possible – please enter through the main entrance to Chancellor’s Wing.

No, the Emergency Department at St James’s will remain in the same location in Chancellor’s wing, we’re just making improvements to the way people access it and receive care within the department.

The new front door will provide a vastly improved environment helping to quickly direct patients to the most appropriate service to receive assessment and onward care they require. Patients will be checked in via the new reception area and then a front door assessment will decide which service the patient requires so they can be moved onwards in their journey.

We aim for the front door assessment to take place within the first 15 minutes of arrival. You will then be moved on for further assessment in the service most appropriate for your care needs.

While we have future plans for the Emergency Department at LGI, there will be no immediate changes to the department there. All children should be taken directly to the LGI as this is where children’s emergency department is based.