SERIOUSLY injured patients at Ipswich Hospital will be treated by a specialist trauma team, after the trust was designated an official Trauma Unit.

The accreditation means the team will be on hand 24 hours a day, seven days a week, to care for those people seriously injured in trauma incidents, such as a serious car crash or a fall from a great height.

Welcoming the news, emergency department consultant, David Hodgkinson, also chairman of the hospital’s trauma delivery group, said it is recognition the trust has a proven track record in providing accredited standards of care.

He said: “This means we meet certain standards of governance and care, and is very good news for local people who now have a Trauma Unit close to home.”

The status comes after a review of all NHS trauma services in the region by the East of England Trauma Network.

In a letter to the hospital, Ruth Derrett, major trauma programme director for the network, said: “We greatly appreciate the support from the Trust Board and its Trauma Committee throughout the designation process and we hope to continue working together in improving outcomes of patients who have suffered serious injuries.”

Addenbrooke’s Hospital in Cambridgeshire is the regional Major Trauma Centre.

If patients stabilised at Ipswich need further specialist care, such as neurosurgery they are transferred to the centre. Patients can also be transferred back to Ipswich for ongoing care.

Tell us your experiences of Ipswich Hospital. Write to health reporter Lizzie Parry at Ipswich Star, 30 Lower Brook Street, Ipswich, IP4 1AN or e-mail lizzie.parry@archant.co.uk