Over these 70 years, Lancashire Teaching Hospitals has grown and developed to offer a range of specialised services to 1.5m people throughout Lancashire and south Cumbria, including cancer, major trauma and specialist mobility and rehabilitation.
In this time, Lancashire Teaching Hospitals has seen a huge number of advances such as the use of the da Vinci Xi robotic system to treat cancer patients, the opening of a Clinical Research Facility to provide patients with new and upcoming treatments, the launch of a digital post-mortem CT scanner, and the arrival of the LIFE centre, an educational facility to inspire careers within the NHS.
Staff at Lancashire Teaching Hospitals have received numerous awards for their fantastic work and commitment to patient centred care. Most recently, two members of staff have been named in the NHS Confederation’s prestigious list of the top 70 stars of health and care, as part of the NHS 70 celebrations. Rachael Moses, Consultant Physiotherapist; and Alison Birtle, Consultant Oncologist, were awarded for the work that they have done to improve the care that patients have access to.
To celebrate all of these achievements and developments, and commemorate the NHS turning 70 years old, Lancashire Teaching Hospitals are holding a variety of events across both the Royal Preston Hospital and Chorley District Hospital sites.
Family fun days will take place at both Preston and Chorley hospitals on Saturday 7th July. These events will include music, games and activities including raffles, a bouncy castle, simulation ambulances and more. They will also be an opportunity to find out more about careers at Lancashire Teaching Hospitals and the options available within the NHS.
At Preston, games and activities will take place in car park E, the Clinical Research Facility will open its doors for activities such as the chance to create your own DNA necklace, Charters Restaurant will be filled with information stands, and Health Academy 1 will be open for more games and activities. At Chorley, there will be activities such as face painting and pony rides, as well as choirs singing their own NHS 70 songs.
The LIFE centre will also open to the public to allow people to see the fantastic new educational facility. Parking will be free across both sites on this day. Lancashire Teaching Hospitals will also use this opportunity to celebrate their achievements and the work of their fantastic staff through various social media activity throughout the week; including 70 stars of Lancashire Teaching Hospitals, and 70 key achievements from the past 70 years.
Staff will also be participating in the national NHS 7 tea campaign through hosting a variety of tea parties amongst their teams. Karen Partington, Chief Executive at Lancashire Teaching Hospitals, said: “As the NHS turns 70 this year, it has been great to see so many staff from across our hospitals pull together to celebrate. The NHS turning 70 is the perfect opportunity for us to look back at our achievements and promote what we do; as well as look to the next 70 years.” “We have seen so many achievements over the past 70 years that are attributed to our fantastic staff who work so hard on a daily basis to ensure that our patients are receiving the best care possible. Our hospitals are consistently at the forefront of research and innovations, which we are proud to be able to offer to patients from the Lancashire and south Cumbria area.” “We look forward to getting staff together and welcoming our communities to both Preston and Chorley Hospitals to celebrate at our family fun days.”