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yourhospitals News and information from Warrington and Halton Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust Spring 2009 Issue 2 Chemo unit boost to New CT scanner speeds Houghton Hall opens Behind the scenes Infection numbers cut local cancer patients up appointment times for step down care at the labs across the hospitals 7 Inside 2 3 5 6 Welcome to the future of intensive care arrington Hospital’s Because staff are working together in new £6.25 million one place on the new unit the beds Intensive care unit - intensive care unit can be used more flexibly between did you know? has opened to its the two types of intensive care - high first patients. The dependency care and critical care. High dependency care is Wstate of the art unit has 16 critical The plan is to have eight beds of each needed when patients have, or care beds and increases the hospital’s type in the new unit, but this can be are at risk of, developing acute capacity for caring for critically ill changed depending on patient need at failure of one vital organ such as patients from across the Warrington any given time. heart, liver or kidney. Intensive and Halton areas. “Over the last four to five years, care is needed when a patient The new intensive care unit has all our intensive care survival rates are has acute breathing failure, or of the latest equipment to provide consistently better than most other failure of two or more vital the very best in monitoring and sup- hospitals in the UK,” said Dr Andy organs. These conditions com- port for patients and has also been Higgs, consultant anaesthetist at the monly follow major accidents or designed to help prevent the risk hospitals, “However, we have had trauma, complex major surgery of infection as well. It is a major to transfer many patients to other or the most serious life-threat- and long-awaited development for units in the region and further afield, ening infections and diseases of Warrington and Halton Hospitals because our old unit was too small to any kind. NHS Foundation Trust as intensive cope with the demand. The new unit care beds have previously been split provides a state-of-the-art facility for across three areas of the hospital in patients, their relatives and our staff converted accommodation. The trust had been unable to further expand along with the expansion in bed num- the old facilities to meet the growing bers that means many more people need for this kind of specialist care. who fall critically ill will receive these high standards of care that they need The new unit brings the facilities closer to home.” together in one purpose built area and has initially increased the hos- Ellis Clarke, matron for critical care, pital’s critical care beds from 14 to added, “We are thrilled with the new 16 - with room to expand to over 20 unit. It’s a major development for the beds over the coming years. The light hospital and our patients that we’ve and airy new unit also houses a new waited a long time for. The unit is family and waiting room, counseling based on the very best practice cur- rooms and staff areas and has the lat- rently available and complements the est critical care equipment and central skills of our teams of doctors, nurses, monitoring built in. therapists and other professionals. The unit is also specifically designed We have got the best equipment and and equipped to help protect seriously infection control measures built in and ill patients from healthcare associated the room to expand that means it is a infections which they can be more unit for the future, not just for now.” vulnerable to. It has two isolation Work started on the new unit in cubicles with a special negative/posi- March 2008. It is located in the tive air pressure system that prevents Burtonwood Wing of the hospital and germs from getting in or out. the area that it occupies has been All of the monitoring equipment and completely redesigned and rebuilt as medical gases in the unit are also part of the project. The main contrac- suspended from ceiling mounted ‘pen- tors on the project have been Norwest dants’ above the beds which makes it Holst who have worked with the much easier to clean the unit as the trust’s estates team to deliver the new floor area is uncluttered. facility on time and under budget. Matron Ellis Clarke and Dr Andy Higgs in the new unit 2 yourhospitals Spring 2009 Issue 2 Editor’s welcome Welcome to the second ❝ edition of the Your Hospitals The new unit newsletter from Warrington and Halton Hospitals. is fantastic! This newsletter is sent quarterly to the 6,500 people who have joined the hospitals’ free public membership scheme which you will have either joined on-line, by filling in a form or by meet- ing one of our membership recruiters at a visit to the hospi- tals last year. Overall things may have seemed quiet on the membership front since you joined us but an awful lot has happened behind the scenes. Our first governor elections took place in September, followed by the news that our application to become an Preparing chemotherapy drugs in the new CANtreat unit NHS Foundation Trust was successful on December 1st. Since then the Governors’ Council made up of the people Chemo unit boost to you elected to be governors has begun to meet. I think it is fair to say that we have a group of very passionate and very challenging governors who local cancer patients will bring a great deal of exper- tise to the hospitals. eople with cancer in Clatterbridge Centre for Oncology. Over £100,000 for the £200,000 concerned, and we hope to provide Warrington and Halton The drugs are prepared in advance plus project to redesign the area funds to improve the CANtreat In this issue of Your Hospitals have received a major at Clatterbridge and brought over and bring it into use was raised by Chemotherapy Unit still further we have tried to give you an boost with the opening to Halton for each clinic. The unit local fundraising led by CANtreat. when funds come in.” update on some of the news of the new CANtreat has a large open area with reclining However, the fundraising hasn’t Donations can be made on line at Pchemotherapy centre at Halton seats for providing the treatment stopped and the charity wants local and developments from www.justgiving.com/cantreat or General Hospital. Warrington and as well as a comfortable waiting people to keep on giving to help across the two hospitals so by cheque to CANtreat Ltd, PO Halton Hospitals NHS Foundation area, nurses’ station, clinic room, further improvements at the unit. you know more about the serv- Box 805, Warrington WA1 1ZS. Trust provides the service in drug preparation area and even a “We’re very proud to have played ices we provide and how the partnership with Clatterbridge relative’s room. a major part in the funding of this Centre for Oncology NHS trust is performing. It has expanded greatly on the improved service which has been Did you know? Foundation Trust. The unit was number of patients who can be seen much appreciated by the patients Over the coming weeks we There are many types of part funded through CANtreat – a at the hospital. It is linked to the and nurses using the new facility,” will be working with the gover- chemotherapy treatments cancer charity that specialises in Delamere Cancer Centre on the site. said Chris Eyres from CANtreat, using different drugs that are nors to put them in touch with funding improved environments for The hospital has exciting plans to “Our aim is to improve the envi- specially prepared for each you as well as providing other chemotherapy patients in the North turn the old smaller chemotherapy ronment in which patients receive patient. Some patients need a West region. room in the Delamere into a com- their chemotherapy to give them ways to get you more involved simple injection of a drug that Cancer rates In Halton are signifi- plementary therapies suite that will a positive attitude in fighting the in your hospitals. can take a few minutes to cantly higher when compared to be open five days a week and will disease. The unit ticks most of the complete but many chemother- Thanks for your support – the average national rate so local allow patients to receive a range of boxes in this regard and we are apy treatments require infusions services are key. If you’re a male treatments to support their care. delighted with the outcome. Raising please feel free to email me through a drip that can take from Halton you have 17% higher “The new unit is fantastic,” explains £100,000 for the project has been with any ideas for features several hours. chance of dying from cancer when Karen Mason, cancer lead man- a great achievement, thanks to all and information you would like compared to England as a whole. If ager for Warrington and Halton to see from the hospitals and you are female from Halton there is Hospitals, “Patients can come in, see we’ll try and include them in a 31% higher chance. the doctor, have their bloods taken and then receive their treatment in future issues. Around 20 to 30 patients a day comfort. It’s purpose built for their with a range of solid tumour If you have access to the inter- needs, it’s comfortable and it is close cancers such as lung, colorectal, net keep checking www.war- to where they live which means that breast and upper gastro intestinal we can make what can be a very ringtonandhaltonhospitals.nhs.

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