First glimpse of plans to expand hospice

Buy photos » The additional space would enable St Richard's to care for more than 70 extra patients every year. (s)

THESE images provide a first glimpse of £1.4million plans to redevelop St Richard's Hospice so it can care for more than 70 extra patients every year.

The charity wants to extend its in-patient unit at Wildwood Drive to accommodate more than a third more patients with cancer and other life threatening illnesses.

The plans would see St Richard’s build four new bedrooms and alter the existing building to create a total of 13 single and two double rooms.

A second family sitting room, therapies room, satellite nurse station, IPU Manager's office, case conference room and doctor’s room would also be built.

One of the bedrooms will be a double-bedded family room so a patient and family members can stay together overnight.

The two double rooms will also be able to be divided into four single rooms if required.

The hospice hopes by creating more single rooms patients and their families will have even greater privacy.

Chief Executive Mark Jackson said: “Our feedback from patients and their families is always very positive but after a detailed survey we realised that changing to mainly single rooms will radically improve the privacy and dignity of a patient.”

“The single bedrooms will enable us to care for more patients. The detailed audit carried out by the clinical staff suggests that we will be able to take up to 74 more admissions each year.”

“Single rooms are more popular with patients and families and we believe our extra bed availability will help prevent inappropriate admissions to the NHS Acute or Community Hospitals. Many of our patients’ conditions are very complex and we will be able to offer more compassionate, attentive and individual care in single rooms.”

Mr Jackson said they had applied to the Department of Health for the maximum grant of £750,000 and were hopeful of receiving good news in March.

He said the remaining funds would be met from some unexpected and generous Gifts in Wills as well as from Grant Making Trusts and hospice reserves.

Mr Jackson added: “We are using the money wisely by building in the capacity to convert two more rooms to single rooms should the need arise in the future, giving us the potential capacity of caring for 19 patients."

Building work is due to start in June with the bigger In-patient Unit due to be caring for more patients in April next year.

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