A PATIENT of North Cumbria Integrated Care's new endoscopy unit has said the £15 million facility was "worth waiting for", and praised its staff and facilities.
Judith Scott, 72 from Wigton, visited NCIC's new facility on the Cumberland Infirmary site last week for a 'minor' exploratory procedure.
And from the "spotless" facilities to the attentive, reassuring staff, Mrs Scott said she had a positive experience, which made her feel proud of the nation's health service.
"I've been looked after from the day I was born," she said, reflecting on her time at the Cumberland Infirmary as its first port access heart surgery patient.
Staff at the endoscopy unit used a camera to examine Mrs Scott's oesophagus after she reported symptoms to her GP at Caldbeck Surgery.
She was worried about the procedure but felt reassured by the calm atmosphere at Newtown Road.
Mrs Scott said: "The people that were sitting waiting... it is daunting, it's frightening but as soon as you went in, they just put your mind at ease."
She said: "You're scared of what's going to happen, the whole thing of having this camera put down your throat... but those girls, they're just amazing.
"I was in the other (endoscopy unit) in the main hospital a year ago but this time it was in the new one and it's spotless, it's lovely."
Mrs Scott opted to go under general anaesthetic for the procedure and felt reassured by clinicians, despite some last minute nerves.
She said: "When I came around, I was in a room having a cup of tea and a biscuit and they tell you (the results) there and then."
Mrs Scott was relieved to receive the all-clear, shortly after the procedure.
She praised "the whole system from the start to the end."
NCIC developed the new endoscopy unit as its existing facilities within the hospital were 25 years old and two of the three rooms were no longer compliant with national accreditation standards.
It is hoped that the facilities, which opened in summer 2025, will see a reduction in the trust's waiting lists and improvements in its diagnosis times.
The state-of-the-art unit includes five clinical rooms which provide a range of endoscopy procedures.
Share