A new drugs manufacturing facility worth more than £3million is to be built at Colchester Hospital. Patients will benefit from tailor-made medication, including chemotherapy drugs for cancer.
The aseptic unit will provide additional space to improve the flow of the drug manufacturing process.
Some drugs have a short useable life, and some are tailor-made for specific patients. They have to be prepared in a clinically sterile environment (an aseptic unit). This includes many of the chemotherapy drugs used to treat cancer patients. The new facility will mean aseptically prepared products can be prepared on the hospital site.
Stephen Pullen, deputy pharmacy production manager at Colchester Hospital said:
“This is an exciting time for the Pharmacy department.
“An up-to-date aseptic unit is essential to build in resilience, so we can continue to provide aseptically prepared products for the Trust.
“The purpose built unit will house specialist equipment and a dedicated, skilled team. The unit will offer the most responsive, flexible and effective service. It will provide safe and high quality injectable medicine, to meet our patients’ needs.
“Products manufactured within the aseptic unit reduce the need for product reconstitution or dispensing on hospital wards. This reduces pressure on nursing time, and increases staff and patient safety.”
Besides chemotherapy drugs, the unit will prepare other intravenous preparations. These include parenteral nutrition and radioactive injections
Barbara Buckley is chief medical officer at ESNEFT. Barbara said:
“A state-of-the-art manufacturing pharmacy unit on site gives us complete flexibility to offer tailor made drugs for individual patients.
“It’s efficient and effective. Improving our facilities in this way means we will be able to cope with rising numbers of patients. We’re very conscious of treating people as quickly as possible, and this will help us.”
The new unit will meet Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) standards. There will be room for more equipment to increase drug production in the future.
Construction is expected to start in April, with a two-storey extension to the current pharmacy building.
Back to top