A NEW urology one-stop clinic has been officially opened at a small North Yorkshire hospital.

The clinic at Malton Hospital, which was officially opened by the Archbishop of York Dr John Sentamu, is an enhanced service for all urology patients which allows fast access to diagnosis and treatment.

In contrast to traditional services, patients will only require one appointment and will leave the clinic with a treatment plan.

The concept of a single assessment and diagnostic centre successfully brings together the common aspects of urological diagnosis and outpatient services under one roof.

Consultation and diagnosis mean that patients stay within the clinic, while stopping off at various points to see a specialist, have an examination and undergo various tests.

Graeme Urwin, consultant urologist at York Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, said: “Patients are often worried when they are referred to us, so we wanted to design a system which was both kind to the patient and efficient.

“The development of this clinic means that patients who may have needed to come to the hospital up to four times, often over several weeks, for their tests and results, now come for the morning or afternoon and have their tests undertaken while they are here.”

The OSC is led by a team of highly-trained urology specialists headed by consultant urologists.