Earls House Hospital
| Earls House Hospital | |
|---|---|
| Tees, Esk, and Wear Valleys NHS Trust | |
 | |
| Geography | |
| Location | Durham, County Durham, England, United Kingdom |
| Organisation | |
| Care system | Public NHS |
| Hospital type | Learning Disabilities, Psychiatric |
| Services | |
| Emergency department | No Accident & Emergency |
| Links | |
| Website | Homepage |
| Lists | Hospitals in England |
Earls House Hospital is a hospital located in County Durham, England, and lies on a large site just north west of Durham city. The hospital is run by Tees, Esk and Wear Valleys NHS Trust who also run St Luke's Hospital, Middlesbrough, and West Park Hospital in Darlington. It formerly served as the headquarters for the old County Durham and Darlington Priority Services NHS trust. The site hosts offices for Tees, Esk and Wear Valleys NHS Trust, County Durham Primary Care Trust, regional internal audit services, and training facilities for the North East Ambulance Service.
History
Earls House began as a vocational residential school for children with special academic needs. It slowly developed into a learning disability hospital. By 1928, it became known as Earls House Sanatorium. It is spread over a very spacious site. The original red brick sections of the hospital provide offices for County Durham Primary Care Trust. Many of the newer ‘villas’ that became used as the main housing for people with learning disabilities closed down in the 1990s when Care in the community was seen to be the only way to cut costs. Most of the villas are now disused or used for administration and training. The hospital now also provides a small general outpatient facility, which includes a dental clinic and a wheelchair and hearing aid service. There is also a large restaurant on the site.
Learning disability services
Three villas on site provide inpatient care for people with learning disabilities (most people with severe learning disabilities in County Durham are cared for in private homes or smaller NHS-run houses). One of the villas at Earls house is a respite care treatment centre, one a long stay residence and one for forensic learning disabilities. The hospital is also home to the regional behavioural support team for learning disability.
Mental Health Services for Older People The modern Bowes Lyon Unit, provides two wards for the elderly organic and functional psychiatry and a day unit and clinic.
Two villas in the hospital are currently used for elderly people with severe challenging behaviours who cannot be placed in appropriate care homes.
Adult mental health services
One of the villas has recently been converted into a small residential special care mental health unit to replace part of the region's demolished Winterton Hospital.
Shortly the County Hospital, Durham will be relocated to this site and a new purpose built unit will be constructed to house the two adult psychiatric wards from the County Hospital and a further psychiatric ward for the elderly on a different site which was opened as an interim measure and is set to closed and be relocated to Earls House.
Future plans
In 2008 work will begin on the £24 million redevelopment of the site, which will see the construction of a new Lanchester Road Hospital.
The current Bowes Lyon Unit will remain however. The new development is also anticipated to contain a physiotherapy department.