An update to X-ray facilities at Ramsey and District Cottage Hospital (RDCH) is the latest in a series of projects that will benefit patients and service users across the Island.
The funding for the X-ray project has been provided jointly by the Trustees of the RDCH Welfare Fund and the RDCH Endowment Trustees. This, along with their other donations, helps to maintain RDCH as a modern and well-equipped community hospital, continually developing and expanding its service provision.
Kathleen McDowall, Manx Care’s Radiology Manager, has highlighted some of the advantages of the new equipment:
‘Using fully digital technology, it allows instant viewing of images, and their increased quality has been noted by the Consultant Radiologists who examine and report on the X-rays. The equipment is also lighter and easier to use for the Radiographers, who perform the X-rays.
For the patient, this means a quicker and more pleasant experience, which is helped by the improved décor in the refurbished facilities. Also, very significantly, for some patients it can mean having an examination on the Island rather travelling to the UK.’
The Welfare Trustees have always been involved in providing funding for all of the Hospital’s Departments, but more recently have helped to significantly expand the range of services provided by RDCH for all Island patients.
For example, until recently, those who required plastic surgery were required to attend Whiston Hospital in Liverpool for treatment. Many of these individuals can now be treated in the Island’s specialist Dermatology unit in Ramsey. The Welfare Trustees were very pleased to respond to the request for equipment needed to establish the unit, which included a Dermatome (used in skin grafting). Manx Care and the Welfare Trustees are currently exploring how the clinic can be expanded, incorporating a conversion of the former Lezayre Ward to become an Ambulatory Daycase Unit for the neighbouring theatre, meaning an improved environment for those attending for Plastic Surgery or Oral Surgery procedures.
An echocardiogram machine, which is a specialist ultrasound machine to scan the heart and its surrounding blood vessels, has also been funded, expanding the scope of cardiology outpatient clinics, and providing a more localised service for the convenience of those in the north of the Island. The service has now expanded from one day a week to three – four days a week, thanks to the additional capacity within the Cardiac Physiology team. This is helping to reduce waiting lists overall, and anecdotal feedback from patients has been – without exception – entirely favourable in terms of convenience, particularly for those requiring better accessibility and parking.
The Trustees of the RDCH Welfare Fund rely entirely on the extraordinary generosity of those who donate or leave bequests, in order to be able to respond to the evolving and changing needs of the Hospital and the services it provides. If you would like more information, or to make a donation, please email rdchwf@manx.net.
