Staff and patients celebrate opening of admission lounge

Patient Patricia Rowley had the honour of unveiling a plaque to officially open the Fry Surgical Admission Lounge at a ceremony held on 30 October.

Patricia was invited back to Chelsea and Westminster to open the new lounge, after she participated in a ‘dry run’ of the facility in August, which was organised to stress-test the new facility to help identify any issues that needed to be addressed before it became fully operational.

Also attending the event were surgical patient John Battey and his wife Anne, who also took part in the dry run and travelled from their home in Lincolnshire to attend the official opening.

Holly Ashforth, Clinical Nurse Lead for Surgery, said: “We were honoured that they came back to see the new admission lounge now that it is finished. It was in a very temporary state when they took part in the dry run.

“Their input, as well as that of the other patients who took part, was invaluable and enabled us to identify a few minor issues prior to the official opening.

“Most importantly though, their feedback helped to confirm that we were doing the right thing and revealed just how much the new lounge will contribute to a positive patient experience.”