Corus helps patients get more comfortable
15 May 2008
South Wales’ newest hospital will soon be able to help make life more comfortable for its patients, thanks to a significant grant from local employer Corus.
A community award of £4,500 will allow Neath Port Talbot Hospital to offer a choice of analgesia and anaesthesia to patients undergoing lower limb surgery, as well as ongoing pain relief while they exercise during the recovery period.
The ward involved provides a wide range of orthopaedic surgery to patients between the ages of 17 to 97 - and sometimes older.
“Ward B2 is always working towards providing a choice of services to our patients, so being able to provide epidural anaesthesia as one of those options is a progressive development for us,” said Ward Manager Maggie Davison.
Neath Port Talbot Hospital is a 270 bed acute hospital which was officially opened by the Prince of Wales in February 2003 and replaced the former Neath General Hospital and Port Talbot Hospital.
Ward B2 is a 32 bedded ward providing a service primarily to patients from the Neath Port Talbot, Bridgend and Vale of Glamorgan areas.
The three Abbott Gemstar ambulatory epidural pumps the Corus funding allowed the ward to buy were already being used in the Princess of Wales Hospital, but not at Neath Port Talbot.
“The provision of the pumps will improve patient choice of analgesia and anaesthesia, providing a specific type of spinal anaesthesia that we can continue to deliver to the patient up to 48 hours after surgery,” Sister Davison continued.
“The benefit to the patient is an alternative choice to having a general anaesthetic and pain relief following surgery which will allow the patient to exercise without pain.”
She added that the ward staff were looking forward to having thorough equipment training so that they could get the epidural service up and running as soon as possible.
“On behalf of all of the ward team, I’d like to thank Corus for making this generous donation to Ward B2, as it will allow us to further develop the service that we provide - which is good news for our patients.”
Corus community spokesman in South Wales Keith Farron said the company was happy to be able to help the new hospital add to its range of equipment and services.
“Having to undergo lower limb surgery is a traumatic experience for people of any age,” he added. “Corus is always looking for ways to improve the quality of life for residents in areas where we have plants, so Neath Port Talbot Hospital was always going to be high on our list of prospective award recipients.”
