Thanks to George for sharing this great news with VB readers, in his own words. Ed
Members of the Friends of St Mary’s Hospital made a brief visit to the hospital’s Intensive Care Unit to see a piece of highly sophisticated patient monitoring equipment which the Friends had purchased at a cost of £12,400.
Better chance of recovery
The PICCO® Patient Monitor continuously monitors the cardio-vascular status of a patient.
This and other parameters derived by the machine are particularly useful for patients suffering from severe forms of shock, most commonly caused by sepsis, trauma or for cardiogenic reasons.
It is already saving lives
“Not only does it help giving patients a better chance of recovery, but that recovery will be reached quicker,” explained Consultant Anaesthetist Dr Oliver Cramer. “In summary it helps medical staff draw the right conclusions at the right time and is thus cost effective.
“We have wanted this equipment for some time, and we are really grateful to the Friends to agree to fund it. It has been used for a short while and is already saving lives.”
The Friends, mainly comprising volunteers, relies on legacies, donations and profits from their hospital shop and cafeterias to pay for extra equipment and facilities that cannot be funded by the NHS.
