Children who visit the Children’s Emergency Department at Russells Hall Hospital will be in for a calmer time as the departments main cubicle has been upgraded thanks to the Dudley Group NHS Charity.
A £10,000 grant from the Tesco Bags of Help scheme has funded the refurbishment of Cubicle four transforming it into a sensory space to help calm and distract our younger patients.
The cubicle is now a bright and cheery space. A professional wall art company was employed to create the visuals for the space, which is a leafy jungle theme that incorporates a ‘how many insects can you find?’ element where the young patients can search the walls looking for ladybirds and grasshoppers. The grant also supported the purchase of sensory equipment such as bubble tubes and mood lighting. Friendly visuals and sensory equipment are invaluable for reducing anxiety for severely distressed youngsters and will be a benefit for any child in need of distraction whilst at the hospital.
The cubicle was officially opened on February 25 by Dr Ahmed Ismail – Clinical Director for Acute and Urgent Care, who said: “A hospital can be a scary place, so it’s helpful that staff can interact with the patients by diverting their attention to focus on the wall art. The transformed cubicle is already making a difference daily by helping to distract our nervous young patients.”
Nithee Patel, head of fundraising at the Dudley Group NHS Charity, said: “We would like to say a huge thank you to Tesco for this very generous donation. Changes such as this make such a big difference to a child’s first, and lasting, impressions of their visit to our hospital.”
“Our Trusts Charity will now continue to work towards refurbishing the remaining cubicles through grants and corporate support and are excited to be able to provide further calm spaces for our younger patients.” If you would like to donate and get involved, please head to the JustGiving page: www.justgiving.com/campaign/ChildrensED.
