London North West University Healthcare NHS Trust is considering moving the Medical Day Care Unit from Central Middlesex Hospital to Ealing Hospital, saying the shift would create space to expand the hospital’s sickle cell day care service, which provides blood transfusions and pain relief.
The nurse-led unit delivers day treatments including intravenous drips, infusions and injections. Under the proposals it would relocate to Ealing Hospital, where it could work alongside the hospital’s same-day emergency care service, which assesses and treats some patients on the day they arrive, helping to avoid admission.
The trust said closer working between the two services could reduce pressure on Ealing Hospital’s emergency department by directing suitable patients to same-day assessment. It said this could help the department focus on the most critically ill, while also reducing overcrowding and waiting times.
The trust said that model is not possible at Central Middlesex because it does not have a same-day emergency care service or an emergency department.
At Central Middlesex, the sickle cell day care service currently shares space with the medical day care unit. The trust said it wanted to expand the facility to better meet local demand. Sickle cell predominantly affects the Black community and can cause episodes of severe pain and lead to other health issues including strokes and serious infections.
Pippa Nightingale, the trust’s chief executive, said the move could benefit “sickle cell, medical day care and emergency patients”, but said it wanted to hear how any changes might affect “patients, families, and carers” before a final decision.
Two public involvement events are scheduled for 15 December 2025: an in-person session at Central Middlesex from 12pm to 1pm and an online session from 6.30pm to 7.30pm. Registration is via Eventbrite.
