Your impact

Take a look below at the difference you have helped to make to our hospital staff and the patients they care for.

Impact Report 2023/24

£40,000 of donations help purchase cooling caps for cancer patients

For many, especially women, losing your hair during your cancer treatment is just one step too far. It can take away your identity and leave you lacking confidence at a time when you’re already feeling low and fatigued.

One way that can help reduce hair loss during chemotherapy treatment is for patients to wear a cold cap. This helps to reduce the temperature of the hair follicles which protects them during the treatment, helping to reduce hair loss in many.

In the last year, Hampshire Hospitals Charity has invested over £40,000 in providing cold cap machines that could help up to 20 local people each week.

£11,000 of donations help create state-of-the-art sensory room

The sensory room at Basingstoke & North Hampshire Hospital closed during the pandemic, and remained closed for over three years. During this time, the hospital was not able to support local children with sensory needs, including those with special educational needs, babies in need of sensory stimulation, and children and young people who need a calm down space, such as teenagers with a mental health diagnosis, as well as they wanted to.

The sensory room was last refurbished back in December 2005 and, while well-equipped at the time, after nearly 20 years, much of the equipment didn’t meet restrictions of infection control and, due to wear and tear, the majority of the equipment was broken beyond repair.

Thanks to generous donations, Hampshire Hospitals Charity has been able to allocate £11,000 to this much needed service to bring a sensory room back to the children of Basingstoke.

Other areas where we’ve invested your valued donations

Clinical equipment

  • New echocardiogram machines which produce increased images, speed and accuracy.

  • New, modern neonatal ventilator to carry out effective volume-controlled ventilation and to record data on each baby.

  • Giraffe Omnibed Carestation which combines the features of an incubator and a radiant warmer for new-born babies.

  • Neoblue blankets phototherapy to enable phototherapy treatment for jaundice new-borns at home - a service previously unavailable with families having to come into hospital to be cared for.

  • Replacement of the gamma camera with a modern SPECT-CT scanner which will significantly improves patient care, avoids some patients travelling to Southampton for care and increases the resilience of the Southampton-HHFT network.

  • 100 Surface Go2s to support new Emergency Department system which will will support focused bedside management, improve infection control and provide stronger patient data governance.

  • Digital reminiscence therapy software which enhances engagement with dementia patients. This has helped to improve health, wellbeing, the quality of care received and provide a positive patient experience.

  • Stryker's PINPOINT system for laparoscopy to improve visual quality in real time during surgery, assisting surgeons with critical decisions and improving patient outcomes.

  • CUSA equipment to assist surgeons with speed and selectivity during surgery.

  • SLE 6000 Ventilator for neonatal unit to enable volume controlled ventilation to reduce the risk of barotrauma to the lungs and to enable the recording of data on each patient.

  • Ophthalmic microscope to improve visual quality during cataract surgery, helping to reduce the amount of time patients spend in theatre.

  • Optical Coherence Tomography scanner to enable patients being treated in Andover to have the scan carried out locally, speeding up diagnostic times and eliminating the need for the patient to travel to Winchester.

  • Surgical operating lights to enhance breast and gynaecological surgery.

  • Pressure-relieving mattresses and repose equipment for the use by patients who are at risk of developing pressure ulcers.

  • Ultrasound machines for assessing and managing patients with rheumatological conditions.

  • Cardiac monitors and trolleys for the assessment bay to improve care for cardiology patients.

Enhancing patient environment

  • Support to help convert Burrell House into Winchester Hospice.

  • Refurbishment and upgrade of the family waiting area and deceased patient viewing facility.

  • Refurbishment of multi-faith prayer rooms.

  • Non-medical equipment to enhance the comfort of patients and carers during their stay in hospital, including furniture, gym equipment and fans.

  • 1,074 soft close waste bins purchased to reduce the noise experienced by patients on wards, especially at night.

  • Ward refurbishments.

Enhancing patient welfare

  • Replacement of missing and unserviceable wheelchairs across all sites to meet patient and visitor requirements.

  • Funded a one year secondment from University Hospitals Southampton Foundation Trust for a Stroke Nurse Specialist to improve the hyper-acute stroke patient journey from the Emergency Department through to the hyper-acute stroke service.

  • Funded committed an 18-month Paediatric Diabetes Educator to work alongside the paediatric diabetes nursing and medical teams providing education about diabetes to children, young people and their families, with a particular role in supporting the increasing number of young people who are using digital technology to assist in the management of their diabetes.

  • Eight Richmond Recliner Chairs to encourage patients to move from their beds and sit more comfortably.

  • Installation of air conditioning in the cardiac physiology department to provide a comfortable and safe clinical space for staff and patients, eliminating the loss of clinic slots due to unsafe temperatures.

  • Installation of additional showers on Clarke Ward and Shawford Ward.

  • Funded a one-year pilot of a part-time Myeloma physiotherapist to provide specialist physiotherapy input to Haematology outpatients and inpatients.

  • Funded 22 parent bed mattresses for parents who wish to stay with their children.

  • Funded a nutritional assistant on a trial basis for 12 months to provide nutritional help and advice to patients across both trauma wards.

  • Providing a memorial sculpture in recognition of organ donors.

  • Supported Winchester Hospital Radio to improve the patient radio service.

  • Providing a befriending volunteer manager, Myeloma physiotherapist and a palliative care assistant.

Supporting staff to be even better

  • Supported staff to attend educational programmes to expand their skills and knowledge to do their jobs better.

  • New booths in the hospital library that offer comfortable seating for our staff for private study or small group work, enhancing the ability of our staff to complete their studies/research/projects in a dedicated space.

  • Investment in staff welfare including free meals, thank you metal water bottles and outdoor furniture.

  • Improving office and staff room environments.

  • Funded secure cycle parking and an electric bike trial which also supports the Trust's Green Travel Plan objectives

Research

  • Funded a pilot project to understand the ecosystem of Pseudomyxoma Peritonei at single cell resolution. Basingstoke and North Hampshire Hospital is one of the largest peritoneal malignancy centres in the world undertaking over 300 cytoreductive surgeries with Hyperthermic intraperitoneal Chemotherapy (HIPEC) per year.

  • Hampshire Hospitals is one of the leading liver surgery units in the world. The charity funded a study of coagulation in liver surgery and the results will be published in peer-reviewed journals and presented at national and international conferences.