This month marks one year since the Outpatients Assessment Centre (OAC) opened its doors at St Mary's Hospital.

Following the successful relocation from the former Beales (Dolphin Centre) site in June 2025, St Mary's has rapidly developed into a key outpatient and diagnostic hub for University Hospitals Dorset, supporting both Community Diagnostic Centre (CDC) and outpatient activity from a single site.

Today, the site provides access to 19 outpatient clinic rooms, two ultrasound rooms, five ophthalmology lanes, two phlebotomy rooms, two procedure rooms and DEXA scanning facilities. The co-location of outpatient, diagnostic and procedure services has created opportunities to deliver more efficient pathways, reduce patient journeys and improve the overall patient experience.

Over the past year, St Mary's has supported the delivery of more than 37,000 CDC patient appointments despite the complexities of relocating services from the Beales (Dolphin Centre) site. Activity is expected to continue growing, with plans to deliver over 42,000 CDC appointments during 2026/27.

One of the most significant developments has been the introduction of dedicated procedure rooms, supporting the transfer of suitable minor procedures away from main theatre environments and enabling the development of innovative one-stop pathways. Examples include the Urology One-Stop Service, Elective Hand Hub and Dermatology Rapid Access Clinic, with further one-stop services currently being developed.

Thank you to all our clinical, administrative, operational, estates, digital and volunteer colleagues whose hard work, flexibility and commitment have helped make St Mary's a success over the past 12 months.

Happy First Birthday, St Mary's OAC – and here's to the next chapter.