Local people have been digging deep in their pockets to help us fundraise for a new Breast Care Centre at Ipswich Hospital. And now it’s time for the digging to start for real.
Teams today began the building work on the new multimillion pound treatment centre. As our photos show, staff and patients joined the building teams as the huge project gets underway.
The new centre will transform the experience patients have when they come to hospital by bringing all elements of breast care under one roof – the clinic, the imaging department and hospital breast screening.
Nurse specialist Sue Yates said: “This new centre will give patients the environment they need and deserve for their care. A gold standard environment for gold standard care.”
The new centre is a partnership between NHS funding from ESNEFT and a fundraising appeal called The Blossom Appeal by Colchester & Ipswich Hospitals Charity. There’s still £500,000 to raise towards the £1.75million charitable contribution to the project and there are plenty of ways to get involved with fundraising (see the charity website). Making a donation now will help contribute towards equipment and furnishings to go in the centre.
Mandy Jordan, associate director of Colchester & Ipswich Hospitals Charity, said: “This is an exciting time for the hospital and our many, many fundraisers who have run, cycled, swam, baked, bought and sold and more to make The Blossom Appeal a success.
“All the charity money will go towards making the centre state-of-the-art. There will be extra equipment, artwork, peaceful indoor spaces and gardens.”
The number of patients needing breast care is on the rise but at Ipswich Hospital there isn’t currently a dedicated clinic. The breast care team shares clinic space with other clinical departments so it isn’t tailored to breast care. The new centre will create this dedicated space and will also bring hospital breast screening and breast imaging under the same roof. Patients will no longer need to walk backwards and forwards between the departments as they do now, often needing to get dressed and undressed again and spend longer in waiting rooms.
The new centre is due to open in the central outpatients’ area of the hospital later this year.
The Breast Care Centre is one of a number of building developments planned for Ipswich Hospital. Work is also underway to build a new Urgent Treatment Centre and Emergency Department, and a new Children’s Unit will be built this year too thanks to another partnership between ESNEFT and Colchester & Ipswich Hospitals Charity.
Director of Estates and Facilities Paul Fenton: “We are investing millions of pounds in Ipswich Hospital to make sure patients have the best possible buildings and environments for healthcare.”
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