In this section
AMU is a busy environment and we receive approximately 40 admissions every day. It is not normally a long term stay area for patients and we expect to send patients home or move patients to a speciality ward within 24 to 48 hours. The unit sees patents presenting with a range of acute medical problems, but common problems treated include; heart problems, asthma, chest infection and other respiratory condition; gastrointestinal bleeding; drug and alcohol problems; and acute illness in the elderly.
On admission to the AMU and to maintain the highest quality of care and treatment for everyone, we involve a number of professional teams in our work, including the medical, nursing, therapies, pharmacy and administrative teams.
During admission on the AMU patients will be allocated a named nurse who will take care of you for that shift and each shift change. They will take baseline observations and work through an admission kardex with the patient.
Patients will be reviewed by one of the specialist acute medical doctors who will assess and examine the patients to develop a plan for their care. The junior doctor working within this area will ensure that your treatment plain is reviewed on a regular basis with support from your consultant team and other professionals working on the AMU.
The consultants ward round starts at 08:00 am each morning with a board round at 11:00 am each morning, and patients maybe visited by either an AMU consultants or one of the visiting consultants form the varying specialities. Patients should be aware that these ward rounds may last until 12:00. A second board round is also commenced at 14:45 pm. Patients may not been seen in order of their arrival time but in order of their clinical need. Throughout the day patients may also be visited by members of our pharmacy or therapy teams to ensure that patients are receiving the right treatment to support their recovery.
Following discharge home, a discharge summary is sent to the patients GP, giving details of investigations and treatment on the unit, with details of medication on discharge and any recommendations for aftercare.