Patients benefit from new Community Diagnostic Centre in Bognor

The mobile CDC, settled on the Bognor Regis campus at the University of Chichester, provides easy access to diagnostic pathways, housing CT and MRI scanners, and offers accurate and timely diagnoses away from bustling hospitals.

Run by University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust, this facility brings imaging procedures closer to residents in Bognor and surrounding areas, providing much needed capacity to the West Sussex population.

Jemma Deane, CDC Operational Manager said: “We are so pleased to have now opened our CDCs across the breadth of Sussex, to enable patients access to a healthier, more connected community. This centre saw more than 100 patients within the first week of opening!”

In partnership with InHealth, a specialist provider of healthcare solutions, this new facility provides a dedicated space for delivering imaging to support patients on elective care journeys and those referred for cancer diagnosis.

CDCs are part of a wider NHS initiative to introduce community hubs where patients can use diagnostic services separate from acute hospitals.

Designed to help speed up diagnosis and improve patient experience, the CDC allows patients to access planned diagnostic care nearer to their home, making it simpler to receive healthcare and eliminating lengthy journeys further afield.

This means shorter waiting times for patients and reducing the risk of cancellations which can happen when more urgent cases within hospitals take priority.

This new facility joins the CDC in Falmer, based at the AMEX stadium, as spokes of the Trust’s main CDC hub at Southlands Hospital, further extending the reach and improving the overall experience for people in Sussex.

The centre can be found in the university’s Tech Park and is staffed by a team of experts providing services from Monday to Saturday.

Southlands CDC hub is currently in phase two of its development which will provide further diagnostic services, including echocardiography, gynaecological and respiratory procedures, expected to be finished in Autumn 2024.