SWANAGE Hospital Day Surgery and Endoscopy Unit has achieved national recognition.

The Dorset HealthCare service is one of seven community hospitals across the country to receive a prestigious award from the Joint Advisory Group on Gastrointestinal Endoscopy (JAG).

The accreditation recognises the unit as a service that maintains and excels beyond national health standards.

It comes after another Dorset based unit, Florence House perinatal unit in Westbourne, received similar accreditation for its expanded brain injury service.

The Swanage Endoscopy Unit has been working towards the accreditation for four years to ensure the service provides the very highest standard of care possible. Standards measured by JAG include the facilities in the unit, equipment, staff training, waiting times and patient satisfaction.

The lengthy accreditation process also involves intensive staff interviews and observations. Darren Wickwar, interim hospital matron at Swanage Hospital, said: “This award represents the tremendous hard work and care the Swanage Hospital team consistently provide. To be recognised by JAG as a health service leader in delivering exceptional patient care is evidence of the continuing growth and development that is taking place throughout the trust.”

John Stebbing, chair of JAG, added: “The Joint Advisory Group on Gastrointestinal Endoscopy provides UK-wide support for endoscopy services to ensure they have the skills, resources and motivation necessary to provide the highest quality of patient-centred care.

“Award of accreditation provides robust assurance that the service is delivering high quality, safe and effective care for patients as well as supporting the endoscopy workforce appropriately and providing a suitable training environment. Once achieved, JAG Accreditation is renewed on an annual basis.”

Dorset Healthcare said it wanted to give a special thanks to the hard work of the day surgery unit manager Sister Judy Ford, lead endoscopist Teresa Karlowski and the rest of the team. Swanage Hospital is the first community unit within Dorset HealthCare and the seventh in England to achieve this award.