Legacy Of Community Support In Hospitals in Worthing and Chichester

Friday, 17 July 2020 16:33

By John Warburton @Warblefly

Murals of pictures from West Sussex's communities and messages from schools are some of the gifts set to go on display in hospital wards, symbolising their links with the county as a whole throughout the coronavirus pandemic.

The permanent displays are a scheme extending across two of the hospitals run by the Western Sussex Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.

Managers said it's to showcase the "overwhelming support" that the county's communities have given to Worthing Hospital and to St. Richard's Hospital in Chichester.

Hundreds of rainbow pictures and messages of support arrived with patients who were unable to receive visitors, as Covid-19 restrictions took hold.

The trust's spokesperson explained that most of the wards at the two hospitals have been "twinned" with local schools or community groups because the treatment areas are named after Sussex places.

For instance, Durrington High School in Worthing has been partnered with Durrington ward.

Via the hospitals' trust, Chris Woodcock, Headteacher, Durrington High School, said:

"Kindness is one of our core values at Durrington High School and we encourage students to give back to the community.

"Our students have really enjoyed getting creative and sharing messages to patients and staff on Durrington Ward.

"We're excited to see how this partnership flourishes."

Pauline Cheeseman, Durrington Ward Matron, added:

"We're delighted to be twinned with Durrington High School and look forward to seeing how this partnership develops in the future.

"We love the idea of engaging local students and building a sense of community."

Trust bosses said, in the future, they hoped twinning could support recruitment, volunteering, work experience, fundraising, community engagement and many other benefits still to be discovered.

Alongside the twinning scheme, the trust is asking communities to send in pictures of their pandemic tributes to feature on permanent murals on the walls of Southlands, Worthing and St Richard's hospitals.

According to the trust, its staff intends to collage them into a colourful design they hope will be "wonderful, ensuring the love and support received for the trust's amazing NHS teams is appreciated for years to come".

The trust has invited contributions to wshnt.pictures@nhs.net or WhatsApp 07557 01 41 03.

Chief Nurse, Maggie Davies said:

"We have all been blown away by the wonderful support we've received from our communities in recent weeks.

"Our twinning initiative will enable us to foster these relationships and develop even stronger bonds with our communities in the years ahead, and the murals will help visualise just how appreciated and valued our staff are by the local community long after the pandemic ends."