New NHS diagnostic centre opens in Yeovil

A new NHS diagnostic centre, which will provide around 70,000 tests and outpatients appointments a year, has officially opened its doors.

The facility next door to Yeovil District Hospital will include audiology services, an ear nose and throat unit, and cardiology.

It follows the opening of a community diagnostic centre in Taunton in 2021, as well as the development of a new £17.8m new centre in Bridgwater, which is expected to open later in 2026.

Jonathan Ockrim, Somerset NHS Foundation Trust's lead for the Yeovil Diagnostic Centre said it was "excellent" to see "such continued investment" in local services.

Ockrim said the state-of-the-art centre, which will open seven days a week, will "further enhance patient experience, and will help reduce waiting times for a range of core services, ultimately meaning a much improved service" for patients.

Run by Somerset NHS Foundation Trust, in partnership with InHealth, the new centre will also include MRI and x-ray technology, as well as endoscopy appointments.

Health minister Karin Smyth said: "The NHS should fit around patients' lives, not the other way around, and that's why this new facility is such good news for people in Yeovil, North Dorset and the surrounding area.

She said providing scans, tests and checks closer to where people live "help patients get answers faster".

"That means quicker diagnosis, quicker treatment decisions, and less time spent waiting and worrying," she added.

Smyth said investing in new diagnosic centres was part of the government's plan to reduce waiting times and "build an NHS fit for the future".

Follow BBC Somerset on Facebook and X. Send your story ideas to us on email or via WhatsApp on 0800 313 4630.