Rutland set for new MRI unit next year
The county currently has no MRI facility
Last updated 14th Dec 2022
Rutland could see a new MRI unit open as early as April next year - after a local care group applied for planning permission.
If it goes ahead, it will provide the people of Rutland greater and quicker access to essential health facilities.
Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland Patient Care Locally (LLR PCL), a Community Interest Company which work in partnership with the NHS, are seeking planning permission to build the unit at Oakham Enterprise Park.
Should the application be successful, the unit could be open in April 2023.
Rutland currently has no MRI facility. This means that patients requiring the service are often subject to long wait times as well as having to travel out of the county to get their scans, sometimes as far afield as Leicester and Peterborough.
If successful, LLR PCL would like to develop the unit to offer even more facilities, such as echocardiograms, non-obstetric ultrasounds and specialist consultations. The new facility will support local GP practices and compliment the facilities already available at Rutland Memorial Hospital.
The location of the new unit will be familiar to many residents of the county as it is where Covid-19 vaccinations were previously given during the pandemic.
Dr Gareth Chidlow, procurement director of LLR PCL said: “We are very excited to be developing the former vaccination centre to offer the people of Rutland local access to MRI scans, non-obstetric ultrasound scans and Heart scans. Over the next few months, we hope to be able to announce further medical facilities that will be available on site.”
LLR PCL has been engaging with local community leaders over the last few weeks and has received a great deal of support for this project. If approved by the council, this will be a huge boon to the people of Rutland as well as relieving some pressure on our NHS.
LLR Patient Care Locally is a not-for-profit, Community Interest Company established in 2011 and is made up of over 90 share-holding GP practices across Leicester, Leicestershire, and Rutland.
Working in tandem with the NHS, LLR PCL identifies what patient care needs can be undertaken in more local settings without the need for a hospital visit. This means patients can get the care they need quicker and in a more familiar environment. Put simply, the right care at the right time, within the right setting.