Friends of Eastbourne hospital

A £1million investment in state of the art technology will help make Eastbourne District General Hospital into a Centre of Excellence for the treatment of prostate cancer and will attract patients from a wide geographical area. Ann Wilson, Secretary to the Friends of Eastbourne General Hospital, spoke to the Rotary Club of Senlac about the history of the Friends and, in particular, their major project for 2015, the Da Vinci Surgical Robot. Hospital Friends began in 1740 with the formation of the Linen League, a group of doctors’ wives who helped out with patient care and general hospital duties to make the lives of patients more bearable. The establishment of the NHS in 1948 did not remove the need for volunteers and the Friends of Eastbourne Hospital was then formed. In 1953 it became a charity and supported the various hospitals in the area until the opening of the Eastbourne DGH in 1976. With over 2500 members and 150 volunteers the Friends is managed by a very experienced Board of Trustees and has raised over £9million for the benefit of patients and visitors by meeting needs that would not otherwise be met by government funding. Apart from funding vital equipment such as scanners, power hoists and a cardiac probe, they have paid for refurbishment of patient, patients’ families and visitors’ areas. The purchase of the Da Vinci Surgical Robot, together with the redevelopment of the Pevensey Ward, will be a major advance in treating prostate cancer effectively and efficiently. Surgeons will be able to perform operations with the minimum of invasion and with considerable accuracy and precision. Patients will therefore have shorter hospital stays and quicker recovery times. The Rotary Club of Senlac were pleased to make a donation to the Friends’ fund.

Rotarian Glyn Parry gave a vote of thanks to Ann Wilson.