Acute Medicine Department

The Acute Medicine Department, also known as The Rainbow Unit,  is located in the new modular building close to the Emergency Department in Russells Hall Hospital.

Rainbow Unit is a two-storey facility with an acute assessment unit on the ground floor with 22 spaces and eight monitored beds. On the first floor is a 30-bed short stay ward

AEC is located next to Ward A2 (formerly ward A1) and consists of four trolleys for assessment, three clinic rooms and a room for triage and treatment.

AEC is part of the Same Day Emergency Care (SDEC).

AMU operates closely with ED and admits medical patients 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The main role of AMU is to provide you with an initial assessment, investigation and treatment for admissions with medical problems.

AEC is open from 8am – 10pm (last booking at 7pm), and GPs or other healthcare professionals can refer you directly to the unit. ED can also refer you to AEC if you are an ambulatory patient (not likely to require inpatient admission). AEC can be a busy unit, but we aim to make your journey through the acute unit as smooth as possible. Whilst in AEC, you can expect to have nurse triage, doctor clerking and consultant review along with necessary investigations.

If you need admission to AMU or RAB for ongoing treatment from ED or AEC, the consultant-led AMU team will initiate a further management plan for you. There are daily reviews by consultant from 8am in AMU, RAB and AEC, seven days a week including bank holidays. If you need sub-specialty input, you will then be referred to different specialties. Following treatment on AMU, you may be well enough to be discharged or, if you need further inpatient specialist care, you will be transferred to an appropriate ward within 48 hours.

You may be admitted to AMU if your expected length of stay is 48-72 hours. The senior led team will review you on a daily basis, including weekends and bank holidays. If you need a longer stay for further treatment, you may be transferred to other appropriate wards after 48-72 hours. In AMU, you will also be reviewed by therapy services if necessary.

Discharge and follow up:

Following your discharge home, an electronic discharge summary will be sent to  your GP giving details of investigations and treatment on the unit, with details of medication changes, medications on discharge and any recommendations for follow up and referrals.

There are regular AMU follow up clinics (Hot Clinics) done by acute medicine registrars to follow up if you need a further urgent review after discharge. Any outstanding/outpatient investigations can be reviewed in a Virtual Clinic  (without the need for you to attend physically) and any further action, if needed, will be communicated to your GP as necessary.

Team of doctors: 

AMU consists of a team of consultants:

§  Dr Partha Nandi (CSL) 

§  Dr Ibrahim Malik (deputy CSL)

§  Dr Allyson McClung (lead of assessment)

§  Dr Snigdhendu Mandal

§  Dr Murali Veerabahu

§  Dr Athanasios Georgalas

§  Dr Randa Abasaeed-Elhag

§  Dr Ragunath Durairajan

§  Dr Anirban Chakraborty

§  Dr Tamar Saeed

§  Dr Faisal Butt

§  Dr Syed Shah

§  Dr Rameez Arif 

§  Dr Mehvish Akhwanzadi

§  Dr Ahmed Elsharkawy  (lead of AMU)

§  Dr Muhammad Aadil (lead of SDEC)

§  Dr Mahmoud Almobayed

Consultants in AMU

Junior doctors

The Acute Medicine Department has a number of middle grades, including deanery trainees and staff grade doctors. AMU has junior doctors in various stages of their training, including FY1, FY2, Core Medical Training (CMT), Acute Care Common Stem (ACCS) trainees and Trust doctors. We have 11 permanent physician associates and one rotational physician associate in our department.

In-house vascular scanning

AMU has in-house vascular ultrasound for conditions like suspected DVTs seven days a week, run by Vascular Sonographer Corinna Gomm and Mostafa Heydary.

Key personnel of AMU:

Clinical lead: Dr Athanasios Georgalas

Medical secretaries: Bev/Ruth (ext. 2654/1783)

Matron: Laura Savva

Deputy matron: Claire Weatherstone

Lead nurses:

• AEC/RAB (ext. 3136/3139) – Vikki Thompson
• AMU (ext. 4688/4676) – Lisa Evans-Dimmock

Visiting hours:

• Visitors have been welcomed back to all inpatient wards at Russells Hall Hospital in a controlled and COVID-safe way. An online self-booking system on the Trust Home page Under the Welcome Back Visitors banner.  Currently one visitor per patient per day is allowed and they can stay up to 45 minutes.  Visitors are only able to book the day before, or on the day, they intend to visit.
• You are requested not to call the ward (unless urgent) during the morning hours of 8am – 11am as the staff are busy doing their morning rounds during that time.