The League of the Friends of Pembury Hospital

Welcome to the Twenty-sixth newsletter of The League of the Friends of Pembury Hospital. This is published regularly to update our existing members and to attract new members. If you would like more information about the League or matters in this newsletter, please contact Alan Davis, Honorary Secretary,

Letter from the Chairman

If you walk around the site at Pembury you will notice that a great deal has been done already to prepare the site for the new hospital.

Wards have closed, patients relocated and buildings emptied, and it is tempting to think there is nothing for the League to do.

The hospital had immediate day to day needs, however, and with NHS finance being under severe pressure, there is much for the League to do.

In this issue you will find examples of our continuing fundraising efforts, and how we are using our funds wisely to support projects at the hospital.

Help as always would be greatly appreciated.

Gary Purdy

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Fundraising Activity

Grand Raffle Draw

The draw took place in December, and raised almost £1,700, a wonderful effort. Our thanks to Margaret Craven and her helpers for their hard work in organising this.

The first prize of £300 was donated by Richard Hochfeld Ltd, the second prize of a 5 day ferry crossing was donated by SeaFrance, and the third prize of £100 was donated by Durtnells. A big thank you to all involved.

Grand Coffee Morning

This annual event held in November 2006 raised a staggering £2,700, and our thanks go to Diana Barber and all who helped with this amazing undertaking.

Store Collections

Collections in 2006 raised over £3,000, and we are grateful to Betty Law and all those volunteers who made this possible. If you can help during 2007 Betty would be delighted to hear from you, and she can be contacted on 01892 834149.

Lastly, we would like to say a big thank you to Richard Hochfeld Ltd again for their generosity in providing a copy of the Dreamweaver software package to enable the continuing publication of our website. The current editor is retiring, and the provision of this piece of software will enable Julie Watkins, the new editor, to take over this task.

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Hospital News

Following approval of the new hospital project by the Department of Health, work has started on clearing part of the site this year. The approved developer is Equion, a consortium that includes John Laing Builders. There are certain financial constraints still to be met by the NHS trust, a detailed design to receive approval by the Tunbridge Wells Borough Council, and approval given to the revised business plan by the Treasury. All being well the final contract is expected to be signed off later this year. The biggest building project in living memory in this area is expected to be a show piece for future hospital design throughout the world.

With this level of confidence, the League has no hesitation in carrying on with its work, which, under the circumstances has more importance than ever in supporting staff and patients at Pembury, as the projects set out below identify.

Projects

CancerTreatment -

We have agreed to purchase an electroic device to trigger a nuclear monitor used to detect a possible side effect of toxicity to the heart when women are taking the breast cancer drug Herceptin. The cost of the piece of equipment was approximately £5,300, £5,000 of which came from a bequest by the late John Cook, who was a loyal supporter of the League for many years.

Maternity

Four vital sign monitors costing £6,230 are being donated to the maternity ward to replace existing but time expired units. These continuously monitor blood pressure, pulse oximetry and temperature during epidural anaesthesia for women under high dependency care.

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AGM

To be held on Wednesday, 16th May 2007 at the Women's Healthe Centre, Pembury Hospital, at 7.00pm.

One of the highlights will be a run through by Equion of plans for the new hospital.

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