The League of the Friends of Pembury Hospital

Welcome to the Thirteenth 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

A new look for the new millennium! We hope you like our new style newsletter, which has been designed by Angela McPherson, one of our new Council members, to be more attractive and informative.

We are always pleased to hear members’ views on the newsletter or our activities, and if you have anything to contribute please let us know. If anyone would like to come forward as a sponsor we could consider using colour or increasing the size of the newsletter to more than two pages in the future.

As I write these notes I can hardly believe that the first year of the new millennium is already drawing to a close. It has been another successful year for the League with over £120,000 donated to the hospital to date, and our efforts have not gone unnoticed.

We were delighted to receive a certificate under the Awards for Volunteering Excellence Scheme from Kent Volunteers 2000, a partnership between Kent County Council, the Voluntary Sector and the Business Sector in recognition of ‘the outstanding voluntary contribution made to the Kent Community’. We were also delighted to be nominated for the Nationwide Awards for Voluntary Endeavour and certificates are proudly displayed in our shop marking our achievements.

May I take this opportunity of wishing all our members, the staff and patients at Pembury Hospital a Happy Christmas, and let us all look forward to another year of achievement in 2001.

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Summer Fete 2000

The primary object of the League is to raise money to support patients and staff at Pembury Hospital.

On August 26 the League held its Summer Fete, the major fundraising event of the year. About 1,500 people attended, attracted by the fifty stalls and many entertainments. Money is still coming in, but we expect to announce a total profit of about £16,000 from the entrance fees, stall profits, grand raffle, collection at major stores and donations. This profit is earmarked to provide medical equipment for the forthcoming Dermatology Clinic at Pembury Hospital.

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Equipment for Gynaecology

Report from Mr O Chapate, Consultant gynaecologist

As gynaecological ‘keyhole’ surgery advances so too does the need to update equipment to keep up with the times. With this in mind the League of Friends has purchased the following equipment produced by Olympus.

• One High Flow Insufflator—this introduces air pressure during laparsocopic surgery, it enables the surgeon clear access to view the inside of the patient’s abdomen. This latest model has many more safety features for the patient and increased control for the surgeon, whilst being much faster than our existing equipment, therefore reducing operating time.
• 5mm Telescopes provide a perfect optical quality and because of their size require a small incision, therefore is less traumatic for the patient. The telescope allows the surgeon to see inside the abdomen, without major surgery. Using this method it is possible to identify problems the patient may have, including taking of biopsies of any suspect tissue or cancer. This information assists the surgeon in deciding the most appropriate treatment for the patient.

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Colposcopy Service

Report from Mr Philip Bamford, Consultant Gynaecologist

The Gynomic Treatment Unit and Smoke Evacuator form essential components of the Colposcopy service. The service is large and expanding with over 700 new cases passing through the Colposcopy Clinic each year. Colposcopy enables abnormalities on the neck of the womb to be effectively treated in the outpatient setting. These abnormalities would in some cases develop into cervical cancer if they were never treated. Colposcopy plays an essential role in the prevention of cervical cancer.

The Smoke Evacuator is a ‘state of the art’ apparatus, which is used with the commonest form of treatment, loop excision. With the Smoke Evacuator the Colposcopy Clinic remains a pleasant and safe environment for the patient and staff. The Gynomic Treatment Unit allows the sterile storage of equipment with the significant advantage that the equipment is warmed before use. Without the help of the League of Friends neither of these items would be available to our patients.

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