SAECU’s purpose is to improve patient care by ensuring those with a potential acute surgical problem are reviewed, treated and discharged promptly by a specialist. The unit is designed for adult mobile patients who are self-caring and are well enough to make their own way to hospital. We aim to prevent any unnecessary hospital stays by seeing and treating on the same day.
Ambulatory Emergency Care services are shown to provide safe, effective and personal care for many surgical conditions. SAECU is an emergency clinic covering six specialities:
- General Surgery such as new onset of abdominal pain, abscesses and appendicitis
- Urology such as Urinary Tract Infections, urinary retention
- Vascular such as new onset of limb pain and swelling
- Maxillo-Facial problems such as facial fractures and lacerations
- ENT such as, sore throats, ear ache and infections that cannot be managed in primary care
- Trauma and Orthopaedics, minor fractures and lacerations
The clinic is Consultant led and staffed by Advanced Nurse Practitioners and Surgeons who have access to rapid diagnostic testing.
Patients are only seen in the clinic following appropriate referral from:
• Emergency Departments
• Urgent Care Centres
• Direct referral from GP or other health care professionals
The Surgical Ambulatory Emergency Care unit can be found on level 1 (ground floor) at the Royal Blackburn Teaching Hospital.
- Enter the building via the main entrance
- Follow the corridor round to the left
- Continue past the lifts and the Macmillan Cancer stand
- Turn left
- Surgical Ambulatory Emergency Care Unit can be found on the left hand side of the corridor.
General enquiries
SAECU has a dedicated ward manager who is passionate about delivering safe, personal and effective care to patients attending the unit. For any general enquiries or advice about our service please telephone 01254 735144.
Opening times
The unit is open 24 hours a day 7 days a week.
A patient’s guide to the Surgical Ambulatory Emergency Care Unit (SAECU)
SAECU is an emergency surgical clinic covering six specialities:
- General Surgery
- Urology
- Vascular
- Maxillo-Facial
- ENT
- Trauma and Orthopaedics
SAECU offers same day emergency care that allows patients to be assessed, diagnosed and treated by a specialist without being admitted to hospital overnight. This unit is designed for patients who are mobile and not confined to a bed. Please be aware that your individual journey through SAECU may vary from this guide.
This guide is available below in accessible format, or via this leaflet: Patient Information leaflet (PDF, 669 kb)
How does Surgical Ambulatory Emergency Care Unit work?
You may have been referred to Surgical Ambulatory Emergency Care Unit by your GP, A&E or some other route.
From the main hospital entrance follow the corridor past WHSmith, continue past the main hospital lifts on your left then take the corridor to the left. Surgical Ambulatory Emergency Care Unit is the first unit on the left, opposite the Vascular Clinic on level 1.
On arrival please report to reception where you will be asked for your details. If you have recently moved house or changed GP or your telephone number, please let the receptionist know so that your details can be updated.
You will first be seen by a nurse who will take a brief medical history and undertake some basic observations such as heart rate, blood pressure, oxygen levels and blood tests, if you have not already had them done. We aim to do this within 30 minutes of your arrival.
After your blood results return, which can take up to 90 minutes, you will be seen by a Doctor or Advanced Nurse Practitioner. They may request further investigations such as X-Ray, Ultrasound or CT scan etc. Alternatively you may be discharged with advice, treated immediately or admitted to hospital for further treatment.
Once your care in SAECU is complete the staff will let you know any next steps before you leave, which may include a return visit to the unit for continued treatment and senior clinical review. If you have any concerns or require further information, please let the staff know before you leave.
Please be mindful that the clinic is staffed by a number of Doctors 24/7 who are on call for emergencies throughout the hospital and will see patients in order of clinical priority. Although it may appear that patients are not being seen in order of attendance, this is not the case and is due to patients being seen by a number of speciality doctors. Our aim is for patients to be seen within a 4 hour time frame. We apologise in advance for any prolonged wait you may experience.
If you have any queries or concerns after you leave the unit please call us on 01254 732521. If your condition worsens call your family doctor.
After you have left our unit if you consider it an emergency please dial NHS 111 or 999.
Disabled parking is chargeable and available at both hospitals. To view access guides, visit AccessAble (https://www.accessable.co.uk) for information and maps.
For general enquiries please contact the switchboard on 01254 263555.