A NEW relocatable £2.5-million MRI unit has officially opened at Bodmin Community Hospital.

Cornwall Partnership NHS Foundation Trust has unveiled the state-of-the-art facility, which will be able to deliver around 7,000 scans per year. 

The unit, which is part of the recently completed community diagnostic centre, will help the trust achieve its ongoing aim of delivering more care closer to home. It will also support efforts to reduce the backlog in elective care left by the pandemic.

Steve Williamson, the chief executive of Royal Cornwall Hospitals NHS Trust, explained how the unit will benefit patients. He said: "We recognise that receiving as much of the care they need closer to home is really important for our patients, with less time travelling and less stress.

"Being able to provide a wide range of services from the community diagnostic centre here in Bodmin not only makes that possible, but also helps us to reduce waiting times and to relieve pressure on our main hospitals in Truro and Plymouth.

"It is an outstanding example of teams working together across our organisations to improve patient care."

Steve and Debbie Richards, the chief executive of Cornwall Partnership NHS Foundation Trust led a formal opening event and ribbon cutting on Monday, July 29.

They were joined by colleagues from across the NHS and local councillors.

Debbie stated the MRI unit builds on the success of joint working, including the community diagnostic centre and soon to be opened elective surgical hub in St Austell.

She said: "This is another really important milestone of our partnership with the Royal Cornwall Hospitals NHS Trust, but also the work that is being enabled by NHS Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Integrated Care Board.

"It means that people in the Bodmin community and residents in north and east Cornwall will be able to access more diagnostics on their doorstep. It will also provide some additional capacity that means, as a system, we can continue to drive down waiting times across the county."

Funding for the £2.5-million unit was secured by NHS Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Integrated Care Board.

Chief Executive Kate Shields said: "The new MRI unit is a welcome addition to the extensive range of health and care services available at Bodmin, from the community diagnostic centre to the primary care hub.

"We are committed to caring where it matters and it is a delight to see this new service up and running. Well done to all the teams involved."

The relocatable MRI unit will operate 363 days per year and has already welcomed its first patients.