We achieved our target for 2013 to fund two day treatment areas (known as ‘pods’) for teenagers undergoing chemotherapy at Southampton General Hospital. This is part of a major refurbishment by Teenage Cancer Trust which was completed in autumn 2013.  Tildy’s Trust raised £50,000 to fund two pods out of the four needed.

The day treatment area is based on the facility at UCL (see picture,left). To see the whole floor plan, click here. The day treatment area is on the right hand side, shown as 4 Bed Ward (A,B,C,D). Click here to see some more pictures

As well as being an amazing project to support, Southampton Hospital is relevant to Tildy’s Trust. Tildy spent quite a bit of time in St. Richard’s Hospital in Chichester and St Richard’s has a shared-bed arrangement with Southampton General Hospital.

We are so grateful to everyone who helped us to make our Target 2013 and please read the message below from Linda Trew of Teenage Cancer Trust to understand the simple benefits that this new facility has already brought about:

Dear Rory,

I hope that you are well. I wanted to send you an update as I was at the unit on Friday and heard such great things I had to share them with you.

So the Teenage Cancer Trust unit is now fully opened, all the nursing staff have been recruited, trained and inducted. This includes 15 nurses, 2 Ward Sisters and the Senior Sister, providing a ratio of 1 nurse to 3 patients instead of the normal 1:8 ratio.

The unit has been full since it opened its doors. Patients have included some long term (6 weeks), high risk patients as well as some young people without cancer but because there was no space elsewhere in the hospital, we were able to offer them a bed in our unit.

We also heard some great stories – a girlfriend that came to the unit every evening to cook her boyfriend a meal in the kitchen and they would sit at the dinning room table to share together. How great is that! Certainly not the usual practice in a hospital. Then there was the story of two young people with cancer who have both been receiving care at Southampton but never met. This was because the girl is sixteen and was receiving her treatment on the children’s ward and the young man of 20 was receiving his on the adults. They are now together on the unit; the young man is six months further down the line with his treatment and so is offering support and encouragement to the girl. “He is like a big brother to her, he’s really taken her under his wing”. How wonderful that these young people have now found each other and are able to support one another.

It was so heart warming to hear about all the great work that is going on and the enthusiasm and passion of the staff on the unit – I had to share it with you. Thank you so much for all your support in helping this happen.

All the best

Linda