New Salisbury District Hospital ward officially opens
The new Imber Ward is in the Elizabeth Building
Salisbury District Hospital's new Imber Ward has started welcoming it's first patients, meaning an extra 24 beds are available to care for elderly patients.
The ward, housed inside the £14 million Elizabeth building - named in honour of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, allows older patients to be looked after in a dedicated space.
This means the hospital's surgical beds can be put to better use in delivering elective care such as day surgery.
The name of the new ward was voted by hospital staff and was chosen as a tribute to the village taken over by the miliary to train American troops ahead of the Liberation of Europe in 1943, the same year as the US Army Field Hospital opened on Odstock Road.
The building is also environmentally friendly, with solar panels, low-carbon concrete, and heat pumps, so there is no need for fossil fuels to be used. It also features thermal insultation.
Lisa Thomas, Salisbury NHS Foundation Trust Interim CEO, said: ”We are very pleased to have built and opened our new ward, which provides elderly care in a state-of-the-art modern environment. Importantly, the new ward supports the Trust’s elective recovery programme, and marks a major milestone in our efforts to deliver the very best compassionate, effective care to our community, while improving our sustainability.“
The new ward has been equipped and furnished with the support of the hospital's charity, the Stars Appeal.
The charity provided £600,000 for equipment, including the latest patient monitoring system, furnishings and artwork to create a state-of-the-art, dementia-friendly space with an enhanced environment benefiting patients, their families and staff.
Much of the funding was made possible by legacy gifts to the Stars Appeal from those remembering the charity in their Wills.
President of the Stars Appeal, the Earl of Pembroke, said: “Imber Ward is another fantastic example of the difference that the Stars Appeal makes at Salisbury District Hospital, which is only possible thanks to donations, fundraising and, especially with this project, those who so kindly remember the charity in their Wills.
"I thank everyone who supports the Stars Appeal for their generosity in making projects like this possible.”