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Community Diagnostic Centres (CDC)
Community Diagnostic Centres (CDCs) and their role
The creation of CDCs was recommended following Professor Sir Mike Richards’ Review of NHS diagnostics capacity. The recommendation was that NHS organisations across England move to providing diagnostic services in Community Diagnostic Centres (CDCs) and all health systems are expected to include a network of CDCs as part of their health services offer.
The CDCs will allow patients to access planned diagnostic care nearer to home without the need to attend acute hospital sites. These services would be separate to urgent diagnostic scan facilities, which means shorter waiting times and a reduced risk of cancellation which can happen when more urgent cases take priority. Therefore, this would lead to improved patient experience and outcomes.
The CDCs will help achieve the following ambitions:
- To improve population health outcomes by diagnosing health conditions earlier, faster and more accurately
- To increase capacity in the diagnostic service by investing in new facilities, equipment and training new staff, contributing to recovery from COVID-19 and reducing pressure on acute hospital sites
- To improve productivity and efficiency by streamlining the way we provide acute and elective (planned) diagnostic services where it makes sense to do so; redesigning clinical pathways to reduce unnecessary steps, tests or duplication
- To contribute to reducing health inequalities by ensuring everyone has the same access to care and the same health outcomes
- To deliver a better diagnostic service and more personalised experience by providing a single point of access to a range of services in the community
- To support more joined-up care across primary, community and secondary care