Prince Charles visits Royal Bournemouth Hospital

His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales visited the Royal Bournemouth Hospital today to recognise all that NHS staff and patients have been through during the past two years.

During his visit, The Prince of Wales met staff from across University Hospitals Dorset and visited the new operating theatre that will help with the backlog of patients requiring elective operations since the pandemic. He then officially opened the hospital’s new Lavender Garden, dedicated to the memory of colleagues who have died and a special area for staff to rest, reflect and recharge.

The new operating theatre was built in a matter of months and will open its doors to patients next week. It forms part of The Derwent, normally used for elective operations and after care. However during the Covid pandemic, elective work was paused and the Derwent became a palliative care unit.

Clinical director of trauma and orthopaedics, Mr Paul Pavlou, said: “It’s fantastic to get the recognition from The Prince of Wales of all the hard work we’ve put in over Covid and the tremendous effort to recover from the pandemic. We need bold initiatives and investment into theatres like this to make sure we don’t have long waiting lists for years, and it’s a privilege to be able to show him this today.”

After a tour of the theatre, HRH then spoke to members of staff from across the hospital trust who went above and beyond during the Covid pandemic. They included members of the operating theatres team who went to work in intensive care to support the numbers of sick patients, staff who moved out of their homes during Covid so they could continue to work on the front line, and UHD colleagues who were in intensive care with Covid but returned to work as soon as they could once they recovered.

Louise Pennington, lead palliative care nurse, said: “I’m unbelievably proud of all our teams and for all they did during the pandemic to ensure compassionate and safe visiting for patients at the end of their lives. We pulled together to focus on what matters most to our patients and having His Royal Highness here is great recognition of all we’ve been through.”

On his way to the Lavender Garden, Prince Charles walked alongside the hospital’s lake and spoke to members of the trust’s estate team to learn more about the benefits of green spaces to both staff and patients.

He then unveiled a plaque in the new Lavender Garden and met relatives and colleagues of hospital staff who have passed away. The garden is a peaceful oasis for staff and was funded by generous donations to our University Hospital Dorset NHS Charity.

The Lavender Garden was originally proposed by the hospital’s theatres team as a space to remember their dear friends and colleagues, Anna and Tom, who they sadly lost to cancer in 2020.

Donna Bailey, surgical first assistant, explained: “Just before Anna died, I gave her a bunch of lavender from my garden, and that’s where the idea for this special space came from. This has since grown into a garden for all staff so we can have a peaceful place to decompress during difficult shifts, to recharge after a long day inside, and to reflect on those we have lost. It’s been wonderful to see the garden celebrated by The Prince of Wales, and for the relatives and generous donors to come together on this very special day.”

HRH was accompanied on his visit by the Vice Lord Lieutenant of Dorset, The Hon Mrs. Charlotte Townshend, the hospital’s acting CEO Paula Shobbrook, and acting Chairman Philip Green.

Professor Shobbrook said: “It has been an honour to welcome HRH The Prince of Wales today and have the opportunity for him to meet some of the dedicated people who go above and beyond every day to care for our patients. It has been a very challenging few years for all of us, and our teams have demonstrated remarkable resilience and compassion during difficult times. I am very proud of all they do, and I’m also grateful to our University Hospitals Dorset NHS Charity for enabling us to place a special focus on staff wellbeing with our new Lavender Garden.”

source: HRH visits the Royal Bournemouth Hospital (uhd.nhs.uk)

 

List of pharmacies 

 Pharmacy name and address

Phone Number

100 hour pharmacy

 Locality

Asda Pharmacy

St Pauls Road, Bournemouth,BH8 8DL

01202 298900

Yes

Bournemouth East

Castle Lane Pharmacy
482 Castle Lane West Bournemouth, BH8 9UD

01202 772110

Yes

Bournemouth West

Ferndown Pharmacy
487 Ringwood Road, Ferndown, BH22 9AG

01202 892666

Yes

East Dorset

Tesco Extra Pharmacy
Yarrow Road, Mannings Heath Poole, BH12 4NX

01202 457447 or 01202 367447

Yes

Parkstone

Asda Pharmacy
West Quay Road, Poole, BH15 1JQ

01202 207000

Yes

Poole Central

Equipment – www.redcross.org.uk Is useful for wheelchairs and other equipment

Guide for people nearing end stage of life : https://intranet.rbch.nhs.uk/uploads/palliative/documents/What-to-Expect.pdf

Brief Drugs List for GPs

 

Pain/breathlessness:

Morphine sulphate 2.5-5mg SC PRN (10mg in 1ml injection)

(alternative if taking PO or eGFR<30 – Oxycodone 1 – 2.5mg SC PRN (10mg in 1ml injection))

[Please take background opioid into account when prescribing doses for anticipatories]

Anxiety/distress:

Midazolam 2.5-5mg SC PRN (10mg in 2ml injection)

Secretions:

Glycopyrronium 200mcg SC PRN (600mcg in 3ml injection)

(alternative for secretions: Hyoscine Butylbromide 20mg/ml injection)

Nausea :

Levomepromazine 6.25mg SC PRN (25mg in 1ml injection)

(alternative for nausea: Haloperidol 1.5mg SC PRN (5mg in 1ml injection)

Water for injection

Dexamethasone 3.3mg SC OD-BD (equivalent to 4mg PO) if risk of steroid withdrawal/Addisons during terminal phase.

Day/Time Example Timetable
Monday - AM

9am MMU Ward Hand over; 9:30am Tour of MMU

10m Consultant Ward Round, MMU

Monday - PM

12pm Ward Nurses - syringe driver administration (treatment room)

1:30 Nursing Handover – MMU (ward office)

MMU – Admission Assessment(s) with ward doctor

Tuesday - AM

9am Ward Hand over

9:20am Referrals Meeting on MMU

10am Community visiting with Specialist Nurse

Tuesday - PM

12:30 Journal Club – MMU (doctors office)

2pm Introduction to Patient and Family Support Team

3pm Introduction to Welfare and benefits Advisor

Wednesday - AM

9am Ward Hand over

9:20am Referrals Meeting on MMU

10am Consultant ward round - MMU

Wednesday - PM

2pm Doctor/Nurse Home Visit with Specialty Doctor

Thursday - AM

9:15am Multi-Disciplinary Team Meeting on MMU

Thursday - PM

2pm Introduction to Palliative Rehabilitation with Physiotherapist

3pm Introduction to Complex Discharge Planning in terminal illness

Friday - AM

Hospital Palliative Care Team Ward Visits

Friday - PM

2pm Introduction to Personalised Care Plan for the Last Days of Life with End of Life Care Nurse

4pm Debrief / sign off