Welcome to Focus

Welcome to Focus, the quarterly magazine from Imperial Health Charity.

At every important moment in our lives, the National Health Service is by our side. It's there to welcome us into the world, heal us when we're sick and take care of us as we grow older. The NHS is part of our life story.

This year our NHS turns 75. And there has never been a better opportunity to say thank you.

This edition of Focus is packed with real-life stories told by people who have been cared for in our hospitals and feel a deep sense of gratitude to the incredible staff and volunteers at Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust.

Whether it's Peter, whose life was saved in our intensive care unit at St Mary's Hospital after a dramatic road traffic collision last year (p10). Or Shahnaz, who was treated for a severe brain aneurysm at Charing Cross Hospital in 2018 (p4). Or Helen, who is on the road to recovery thanks to staff at Hammersmith Hospital following a diagnosis of advanced ovarian cancer in 2020.

Every one of us has a story like this about the NHS - or knows someone who does. And as we celebrate the 75th anniversary of this remarkable institution, we're stopping to say thank you.

If you'd like to, you can join in with our NHS75 celebrations by sharing your personal thank you to a member of staff or volunteer at our hospitals. You can send us your thank you message at: imperialcharity.org.uk/nhs75

Thank you.

Ian Lush OBE Chief Executive, Imperial Health Charity