Somerset NHS Foundation Trust will build a new £17.8m diagnostic centre next to its Bridgwater Community Hospital, following approval from NHS England.
Dubbed the Bridgwater diagnostic centre, the hub will have two CT scanners, two MRI scanners, four outpatient rooms and two echocardiography/ultrasound rooms. It will be used for both routine and specialist cardiac and cancer scanning appointments, as well as clinics. Outpatient services will also be conducted at the centre.
In the meantime, Somerset NHS Foundation Trust is working with Agito Medical to equip Bridgwater Community Hospital with temporary MRI and CT scanners.
The announcement of the new centre comes following the opening of a similar facility in Taunton in 2020 and the ongoing development of a diagnostic centre beside Yeovil Hospital, which is expected to open this year.
“Fantastic news'
David Craig, Somerset NHS Foundation Trust’s programme director for the project, explained how the new centre will support the NHS’s 10 Year Plan.
“This development is fantastic news for people in Bridgwater and will improve access to vital healthcare scans, as well as help us to reduce our waiting times,” he said.
“The new centre supports one of the three shifts of the NHS 10 Year Plan, which involves transferring care from hospitals into local communities. Running across seven days a week, it will improve access for people in Bridgwater and the surrounding areas to specialist care, with the centre expected to provide almost 25,000 additional scans every year.
“We have this month applied for planning permission for the new centre, and if approved, the new facility is likely to open in summer 2026. It will be developed by Ergea, a partner of our trust that provides imaging services.”
Gavin Brooksbank, head of implementation at Ergea, added: “We are delighted to be working with Somerset NHS Foundation Trust to deliver this state-of-the-art centre.
“Ergea is our managed equipment service provider and will be working alongside the trust to deliver a centre with the latest technology that the local population would be proud of.”
(Image: Artist's impression of the centre, Somerset NHS Foundation Trust)