£1 million Great North Children's Hospital Appeal Launched
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Construction of the Great North Children’s Hospital is well under way now and it is due to open its doors later this year - now a charitable appeal for £1 million is being launched to further help the children who will need to visit the hospital on a short or long-term basis.
When the hospital is fully completed in 2010, it will be the first time almost all children’s services for the North of England will be together under one roof and housed in a new state-of-the-art building at the Royal Victoria Infirmary (RVI) in Newcastle. It will provide world-class facilities and everything a sick child could need within an environment designed to make both children and their families feel more at ease during what can be an emotional and stressful time.
To further enhance the environment for children, the Great North Children’s Hospital Appeal will provide a range of exciting new facilities which complement those provided by the Newcastle upon Tyne Hospital NHS Foundation Trust. The Appeal is a unique partnership of eight charities working together in a joint fundraising effort and the proposed extra services and facilities will make the hospital even more comfortable and stimulating for children of all ages.
The partner charities include, Newcastle Healthcare Charity, The Sick Children’s Trust, The Children’s Foundation, The Bubble Foundation UK, Newcastle Children’s Hospital Charity, The Puffin Appeal, Radio Lollipop and the Children’s Cancer Fund. They are all coming together to pool resources and effort for the benefit of local children.
Professor Andrew Cant, Clinical Director for Children’s Services, says: “We know that children get better quicker when they are in an environment where they feel comfortable and happy. So raising money for extra patient comforts and innovative activities which create a welcome distraction for children can really make a difference. Ultimately they will help aid recovery and improve the wellbeing of children who have to spend time in hospital.”
Proposed new facilities include pull-down and chair guest beds for parents to spend the night next to their child and ground-breaking digital interactive communication and learning entertainment systems in isolated rooms for children undergoing cancer treatment or bone marrow transplantation or to help distract and relax youngsters before going into the operating theatre.
Professor Cant adds: “Every parent will appreciate the importance of providing additional guest beds so they can stay with their child where and when possible. The comfort this gives both child and parent is hugely significant and doesn’t require any explanation.
“However, the digital systems we would like to install, will provide a very exciting new technique to help calm worried or upset children when they most require it. We’re very excited by the prospect of using them in the hospital as the children and teenagers who are in protective isolation rooms will be able to enjoy the virtual reality interaction and communication by video link, Skype and e-mail as well as having state-of-the-art DVD facilities. We hope the region will get behind the Great North Children’s Hospital Appeal for £1 million and help us create an exceptional hospital experience for our local children.”
Speaking at the launch of the Appeal, Sir Leonard Fenwick, Chief Executive of the Newcastle upon Tyne NHS Foundation Trust, which is investing £100million in the Great North Children’s Hospital, says: “We’re very proud of the exceptional facilities and services we’re creating to benefit children across the North East and Cumbria through the Great North Children’s Hospital. It is a facility the region can be justly proud of and will provide excellent standards of care for our young patients.
“Having to receive treatment or stay in hospital can be a very distressing experience for a child – and for those who have to do so regularly it can also become repetitive and dull. This new hospital has a bright, colourful environment with a host of innovative facilities allowing children and their families to feel more at ease at an often difficult and tiring time.
“The Great North Children’s Hospital Appeal is a fantastic collaborative effort to bring additional comfort and stimulation for children in hospital and we welcome the charity’s enthusiasm and commitment. Their fundraising is the icing on the cake for children receiving treatment within this fantastic new hospital.”
For more information on the Great North Children’s Hospital Appeal please visit www.gnchappeal.org.uk or donate by sending a cheque/postal order to Great North Children’s Hospital Appeal, P.O. Box 326, Newcastle upon Tyne. NE6 9AS.
To donate on-line please go to www.justgiving.com/gnch
Notes to Editors
The completion of the Great North Children’s Hospital will mark the first time the region has seen nearly all its children’s services, staff and treatments under one roof – providing everything a sick child may need in one central hub. With research showing that children see ‘hospital’ as being more ‘boring’ than ‘scary’ this landmark building is designed to feel like anything but a hospital with a bright, colourful environment brought to life with a host of innovative facilities to enhance the experience of children and their families during what can be a very distressing time.
The new facility is designed to feel as far removed from a traditional hospital environment as possible, allowing children and their families to feel more at ease at an often emotionally stressful and tiring time. Among its features, every bedroom will let in maximum natural light, while coloured curved corridors will eradicate the feeling of long, austere walkways. The new hospital will be capable of accommodating 245 children, with 75% of the bedrooms for single occupancy. Each will be equipped with en-suite bathrooms and guest beds allowing parents to rest comfortably close their children when they are most needed.
The rooftop will feature a specially created ‘penthouse’ for teenage cancer patients while the core of the building will house a range of exciting leisure activities including an atrium, outside courtyard, play area and a 50 seat cinema where children can relax and view the latest blockbusters.
The single bed rooms within the new children’s hospital have been planned with a space allowance for a parent’s bed. This will allow parents to stay in hospital and be close to their child. The new facility offers the opportunity to provide a more comfortable piece of furniture befitting the environment and quality standards for the rest of the Great North Children’s Hospital. It is proposed to incorporate a fully fitted folding down bed that is comfortable when in use, but can be discretely folded away when not in use.
A broad scope of services will also be developed and brought together under one roof, incorporating a separate children’s area in Radiology with Fluoroscopy, Ultrasound and plain film rooms, CT, Neurophysiology, Neuroradiology, Children’s Dialysis, Out Patients including Oncology OPD, Child Development Centre and Fracture Clinic. The hospital will also feature a specialist forensic service for children who have been victims of sexual abuse.
Other items of interest include interactive floor and wall projection systems, aimed at stimulating young people, fun and exciting furnishings that children will find appealing and distract them from their situation and many other amazing installations to make an impact on the recovery of children in hospital.
