A generous donation by Stroud League of Friends is expected to result in more surgical procedures being carried out at Stroud Hospital.The hospital has received a new Fine Hysteroscope and two new Resectoscopes and expect the newer equipment will allow more patients on the list and increase the number of patients treated each year.
The donation was made by Thelma Cowley, a former sister at the hospital who spent 23 years working there before retiring in 1993.
Theatre sister Caroline Smith said: “The equipment is used to allow a surgeon to examine and operate on the womb. “The procedures involved are carried out as day cases so women go home on the same day as surgery and recover very quickly afterwards. These new instruments will mean we can increase the number of women we operate on during each theatre session, and I would expect to see higher numbers through theatre as a result. This is great news for the community and partnership working with Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and hopefully means a quicker, more responsive service for women in the area.”
Miss Cowley has made previous donations to the hospital through the League of Friends, including a 2014 gift of three stretcher trolleys. Ingrid Barker, chair of the Trust, said: “We are always grateful for the incredible support which the League of Friends continues to provide, and the way in which their backing ensures our services remain grounded in the communities we serve.”
Photo shows (left to right): Miss Thelma Cowley, Ms Helen Acock – Senior Sister for Endoscopy and Out-patients, and Ms Nicola Strother-Smith – Non Executive Director of Gloucestershire Care Services NHS Trust