THE endoscopy team at Royal United Hospitals Bath are celebrating after receiving a top national award for excellence.

The team has received JAG accreditation from the Joint Advisory Group on GI Endoscopy.

This is awarded to high-quality endoscopy services in recognition of the care they provide to their patients, which follows a rigorous evaluation of the service provided, including an in-person site visit by inspectors.

Following the evaluation process, RUH’s unit was deemed to meet the high standards required in safety, patient experience, staff training, and clinical quality.

Working in partnership with Sulis Hospital Bath, alongside additional recruitment and investment, has also led to quicker turnaround times, helping the RUH to clear a previous backlog of appointments.

An endoscopy is a medical procedure where a long, thin, flexible tube with a camera (endoscope) is inserted into the body, usually through a natural opening like the mouth to examine internal organs and structures.

It is used for both diagnosis and treatment of various conditions.

Around 12,000 endoscopies were carried out at the RUH last year – and this number is predicted to increase over the next 12 months.

Rowan Neville, support specialty manager for medicine, said: “We are delighted to have received such prestigious accreditation.

“It was a really challenging assessment process which needed a huge amount of hard work from our clinical, nursing and admin teams.

“As a department we pride ourselves on consistently delivering the highest quality care and outcomes for the people we care for.

“This accreditation is testament to the hard work and dedication of everyone in the team to continuous improvement, and to ensuring our patients always get the very best care.”

You can find out more information about different endoscopy procedures on the NHS website.