Dementia facilities across Scunthorpe hospital will be improved, thanks to a substantial legacy donation.
The late Mrs Elizabeth Fairchild lived in America at the time of her passing and, while she did not give details of her connection to Scunthorpe and we have been unable to find out more ourselves, she generously stipulated that her donation of £326,000 is spent on benefiting patients at the town’s hospital.
A number of suggestions were put forward by The Health Tree Foundation’s (HTF) board of Trustees, who agreed the money would benefit the most patients by being used to make wards more dementia-friendly. HTF then worked closely with Northern Lincolnshire and Goole NHS Foundation Trust’s (NLaG) Deputy Chief Nurse and Vulnerabilities team to identify the most beneficial improvements.
This includes refurbished bays, cubicles and nine dementia-friendly bed areas on each ward. The rollout programme began with Ward 16 and Ward 17 is the latest area to receive the new improvements. Work on the other areas will take place in the future.
Veronica Todd, Ward 17 Manager, said: “It’s fantastic we’ve been able to get these new facilities and they will make a massive difference to our patients.
“We’re looking forward to seeing the positive changes and benefits this will bring to the ward.”
Sue Liburd (MBE DL), HTF Trustee and NLaG Non-Executive Director, officially opened the Ward 17 facilities last week.
She said: “Coming into hospital can be anxiety-provoking for anyone, with dementia even more so. Dementia-friendly wards, such as this one, have been proven to improve health outcomes, reduce anxiety, distress and agitation. It helps patients to feel safe and secure, enabling them to engage more fully with their care and treatment. We owe a special thank you to the generous Fairchild legacy in enabling this project to happen.”
Other improvements include pictures above the beds, adjustable lighting systems, matt flooring, dementia-friendly signage, Reminiscence Interactive Therapy Activities (RITA) machines and 12-month funding for a dedicated dementia staff post.
Manchu Varghese, Clinical Sister for Ward 16, said: “It’s working very well and helping a lot of our dementia patients. The new faciltiies are near the nurse’s station, so they’re in a really good position.”
Jackie Fenwick, Lead Nurse for Vulnerabilities, said: “These new facilities will benefit our dementia patients in a number of ways. The pictures above the bed will help patients to recognise their own bedspace, and the dementia friendly-signage will help to orientate them to the environment. It’s all about familiarity and reducing anxiety.
“These facilities will also benefit patients with delirium and anyone with a cognitive impairment.”
