ALMOST a century of patient care at a Valleys hospital will come to end in September, if plans put forward by Caerphilly health chiefs are approved tomorrow.

Oakdale Hospital is earmarked for closure as part of the modernisation of hospital services in the county borough, the centrepiece of which is the new £172 million Ysbyty Ystrad Fawr near Ystrad Mynach.

The closure of Oakdale and several other hospitals, including Caerphilly District Miners', was originally scheduled to coincide with the opening of Ystrad Ystrad Fawr, in around two-and-a-half years.

But big reductions in the number of bedblocking patients across Caerphilly, coupled with the development of new support services to speed up discharge from hospital and provide care for patients in their homes, have prompted Caerphilly Local Health Board to consider bringing forward the closure date.

Oakdale Hospital opened in 1915, but will close in less than six months' time under a plan to be discussed by board members. Closure will have £500,000 a year.

It currently has 14 beds, with staff providing support care for patients waiting to be discharged home or into long term nursing or residential care.

These patients are transferred from acute hospitals such as the Royal Gwent, the University Hospital of Wales in Cardiff, Caerphilly Miners' or Prince Charles in Merthyr Tydfil.

Bedblocking, officially known as delayed transfer of care (DTOC), has fallen significantly in Caerphilly since last summer. Last June there were 82 DTOCs from Caerphilly, but last month the figure had fallen to 10.

The work of a joint hospital discharge team, comprising nurses and social workers, working with a home assessment and reablement team, elderly mentally ill liaison staff, and home treatment and district nursing teams, has been a big factor in the reduction.

A new specially adapted ward for frail older people at Caerphilly Miners' is also beginning to reduce lengths of stay in hospital.

Such developments have cut bed occupancy at Oakdale and 15 patients a month are now discharged from the hospital, compared with just nine a year ago. Should closure be approved tomorrow, the aim will be a phased closure of beds in May, July and September.

Support care beds will subsequently be concentrated at Aberbargoed Hospital.