THE new entrance and reception area for the A&E department at Wrexham Maelor Hospital has opened.
The work is the latest stage in a major project to improve the way emergency patients are cared for.
This has already led to the creation of a new medical admission unit and coronary care unit in the hospital.
Within A&E a wide range of developments are taking place, including new assessment areas and introducing greater separation of the arrangements for caring for major and minor cases.
This will help to make sure patients needing urgent care receive this without delay, while protecting services for patients with less severe needs from the disruption that can be caused by the arrival of major emergency cases.
The out-of-hours GP service for the Wrexham area will also be moving into a new area within A&E.
The waiting areas have been improved with new facilities provided for police and security staff and new CCTV systems to improve security and safety.
The new development also includes specialist decontamination facilities for patients who have been affected by exposure to harmful chemicals or radioactive substances.
The building work in A&E is taking place in a number of stages to allow the department to continue running while construction takes place.
