STATE-of-the-art facilities are set to launch Victoria Hospital's Accident and Emergency department out of the dark ages and into the 21st century.

It will include an additional resuscitation bay, separate entrances for minor and major injuries, extensive CCTV and security systems, and a child-friendly waiting room with play area.

The out-dated building has been stretched well beyond its limit over the past four decades. Designed to cater for 37,000 patients a year, it has been pushed to cope with more than 80,000 a year, with people suffering long waits.

Years of careful planning and consideration have gone into designing the new unit to enhance patient care and cut waiting times. The A&E staff themselves have had a significant input into the layout of the unit.

All A&E staff will also be fitted with a bleep that can be pressed if they feel threatened to alert a response team for immediate assistance. Additional staff have also been recruited for the children's area, triage, reception and portering services.

The unit, which is part of the hospital's £30 million Phase V development, is next to the new Intensive Care Unit, which will become operational at the end of September.

Director of facilities for the trust, Mike Gallagher, said: "The building design and layout reflect the views of the staff employed in the unit and also take account of healthcare requirements for the forseeable future."

Myra Miller, directorate manager for A&E, said special attention had been paid to making the environment as patient-friendly as possible. She said: "We have a dedicated children's area which enables us to segregate children from adults. It has been a massive team effort in both planning the new department and and providing the enabling scheme to ensure that patient safety is in no way compromised."

Nick Harrop, clinical director for A&E services said he was very proud of the way that staff have conducted themselves throughout the move and added: "The new department has taken several years of planning. It includes state-of-the-art digital imaging and information technologies. I am delighted that we can now offer our patients a clinical environment which meets the needs of patients with the most serious illness or injury."