Paddington CDC opens to Liverpool patients

People in Liverpool will now benefit from faster access to tests and scans for a range of health conditions, with the opening of an NHS community diagnostic centre on the Paddington Village development in Edge Hill.

The new CDC offers tests to people referred by health professionals to check for conditions including musculoskeletal problems, gastrointestinal conditions, lung conditions and cancer.

The centre is the first phase of a wider development transforming what was previously the privately-run Rutherford Cancer Centre North West into an NHS facility for Cheshire and Merseyside. In an agreement reached in March, The Clatterbridge Cancer Centre NHS Foundation Trust acquired the building on behalf of the NHS in the region.

Initially, Paddington CDC will offer MRI and ultrasound scans as well as phlebotomy. That will extend to CT scans from the autumn once a new system has been installed and commissioned. Future phases will see it expand with additional services.

Trust chief executive and senior responsible officer for diagnostics in Cheshire and Merseyside Dr Liz Bishop said: “People in Liverpool are more likely to experience ill health than the national average so it is particularly important that they can get the tests they need when symptoms develop. Faster and earlier access to tests thanks to community diagnostic centres like this will mean people with potentially serious conditions – and those living with pain or other symptoms – can get diagnosed and start treatment more quickly, giving them a better quality of life and a better chance of a successful outcome.”

Lead picture: Staff from The Clatterbridge Cancer Centre who helped create the new diagnostic service in just 12 weeks.

Published on page 22 of the September 2023 issue of RAD Magazine.