August 2011

Q1: Who is …. BERTIE??

Well done to the 11 teams that took part in the recent BERTIE quiz, who between them raised over £650 towards the Broomfield Hospital’s Education Resources for Training in Insulin and Eating (BERTIE) courses. 

Extra congratulations to BERTIE group member, Mike Wilson and his team who came first after answering the sudden death question ‘How much money in dollars did the original Jaw's movie gross?’

Did anyone else know it was $470,653,000?

As well as taking part in the quiz, teams members also took part in a raffle which raised just over £160.

All the money raised will go towards supporting the BERTIE course, which is a pioneering insulin and eating course giving people with type 1 diabetes the tools and training to cope better with their condition.

Heart patient makes donation to the Cardiac Catheter Suite

Mr Albert Creasey and his wife Sylvia visited the cardiac catheter suite recently to donate nearly £500 to the cardiac department. Albert and Sylvia recently celebrated their diamond wedding and instead of accepting presents, they asked the guests to make a donation towards the cardiac department.

Mr Creasey has been a patient for years, having suffered three heart attacks in the past. He had several procedures and is still going strong, gardening and collecting walnuts which he incorporates in his delicious cakes that he regularly brings to the department.

Dr Gamma, the treating consultant, expressed how grateful he is to Albert and Sylvia for their generosity. He added: “It is good to see that Mr Creasey is still going strong and hope that he will pay us many more visits with samples of his baking skills”. The event was concluded with tea and coffee and, of course, cake!

Georgia jumps for joy for neonatal unit

It’s usually our fundraisers who receive all the attention when they visit the hospital, but when Georgia Archer and her partner, Paul Rippingale, presented a donation to the neonatal unit, it was their 8 month old son Kaydn who was the star of the show.

Kaydn was born 14 weeks early and required over four months of neonatal carebut is now thriving at home.  Mum, Georgia wanted to do something special to say thank you for the care Kaydn received so decided to use her experience as an aerobics instructor to organise Braintree’s first ‘combat marathon’! The four hour workout session to raise over £2,000 which has been divided between all the hospitals where Kaydn was treated.

Georgia explained: “The combat marathon went really well, I had such incredible support from all my friends who helped organise everything from music and food to bouncy castles - I couldn’t have done it without them. I’m delighted with the amount of money we raised, but it will never be enough to thank staff for all they did for us. Kaydn is doing really well, and it’s down to the brilliant care he received that we were finally able to bring him home.”

Former patient raises funds to help others

Brenda Heather, a former patient, decided to say thank you to the breast care team for her care by raising funds by holding a cream tea in her garden.  Brenda said: “This was my way of thanking the Hospital staff for all the help and support they gave me during my treatment.  The afternoon went very well and I raised over £200 for the charity.  This was my third fund raising event, which I really enjoy doing as it is such a worthwhile cause.  My next fund raiser is a Christmas Disco.”

The Breast Reconstruction Awareness (BRA) meetings were established in 2004 in recognition of the need for additional guidance and support for patients undergoing breast reconstruction.  It’s a place for women, newly diagnosed with breast cancer, to be able to meet and talk to other women who have been through the same experience.

There’s always more that can be done and with extra funds through fundraising and donations, the breast reconstruction nurses have been able to refurbish the ward to suit patients better, buy specialist medical equipment, purchase high quality bras for their patients, and run the monthly BRA meetings. 

Online donations can be made by visiting www.justgiving.com/breastreconstructionawareness

Extra spending power for the neonatal unit

Smiles on the faces of our neonatal colleagues were a little brighter this week when staff from Southern Electric donated £340.00 to the unit which cares for our tiniest patients

The cash bonus awarded by Southern Electric to their staff at the Maldon branch for achieving an exemplary safety record has been shared amongst several local worthy causes, including the neonatal unit.  On behalf of their colleagues from Maldon, Hayley Balls and Stephen Pratt visited the unit to find out how the money will be used.

As well as offering her thanks, NNU Senior Sister, Lillian Wager explained: “Although we are in a fabulous new unit here at Broomfield Hospital, there are always things we need to help us with the work we do.  We are planning to provide games, wall stickers, colouring books and other distraction toys for our reception area for the siblings who have to wait around when anxious mums and dads are visiting baby on the unit.  We are very grateful to staff at Southern Electric for letting us share in their success and it will be great to buy some really nice things to brighten up this area of the unit”.