Cranleigh Village Hospital Newsletter 2014

This has been a year of consolidation for the League of Friends.   A considerable number of projects, funded by the League, have been completed including:

• We have made a grant of £85,000 to the Royal Surrey County Hospital to purchase an Ultra Sound.   This is now installed in the Village Hospital and a full service is up and running, saving many patients the journey to RSCH.
• We have continued to support patients needing End of Life Services with a grant of £20,000.   This increases the number of local patients who choose to end their lives in their own homes rather than in a hospital setting and provides support to relatives and carers at a very difficult time.
• Through our partnership with Cranleigh Parish Council and St John Ambulance we have achieved the installation of six Automatic External Defibrillators, one in each public house in Cranleigh at a cost of £6.000 to the League. The AEDs are available almost 24 hours a day and are in addition to those already installed in other premises such as the Leisure Centre, the Health Centre and the Hospital.   A comprehensive list may be found on the parish website and on notice boards around Cranleigh.   Ongoing training, including Cardio-Pulmonary Resuscitation, is offered to all members of the general public.   The machines can be used in absolute safety by members of the general public and are a vital tool in saving lives.  
• New disabled toilets and a shower have been installed at Rowley’s Day Centre with a grant of £6,000 from the League.
• The discussions between Cranleigh Village Hospital Trust and the RSCH are well developed on the use of the Knowle Lane site.   The new health care facility will offer patients a much wider range of out patient services including diagnostic facilities and X-ray and a nursing home with some beds providing NHS care.   The League will use our existing funds and will continue to fundraise to support patients in these facilities as well as supporting patients and services at the new Health Centre and the old hospital.     We are fortunate in our community to have so many voluntary organizations delivering support to patients and their relatives and carers.   These organizations need shared community base to provide services and enable us to work together to maximize resources and share knowledge and skills. The League will continue to press for the old hospital to be returned to community ownership for this purpose once it is declared surplus to NHS requirements.  

We are only able to improve and extend health care for our community with your ongoing generosity and support.  We are grateful for all your help and look forward to working for you as we develop better facilities and services for all our community.