News Beat Spring / Summer 2020

R O YA L

B R O M P T O N

&

H A R E F I E L D

H O S P I TA L S

C H A R I T Y

N E WS BE AT

Pati e nt e nj oy in g ‘ Vo c a l B e at s’ s e s s i o n r un by r b& h A r t s

JOI N OU R F IG H T AG A I NST H E A RT A N D LU NG DI SE A SE

Im a ge co u r te s y of El a m Fo r re s te r

SPRING 2020

// WELCOME //

Welcome hank you for helping to make this a record-breaking year! In this edition of News Beat, you will read why and how we have raised more than ever before.

We held the Turner family in our thoughts as they suppor ted the Charity in memor y of A ndrew Turner (pages 10 and 11) and Dr Mike Rigby explains how our pledge to buy Royal Brompton a new biplane imaging system will benefit his patients, some weighing as little as 74 0 g rams (pages 8 and 9).

This year, our world-class hospitals

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have asked us to help them remain at the forefront of minimally invasive techniques. We will do our best, but we are nowhere without you.

Gifts come in all shapes and sizes – a legacy, a charitable trust grant, regular giving or even a bake sale.

There are many ways you can be part of something truly special. Whether you have fundraised or given a donation, I, the Charity Team, along with thousands of patients and their families, say a huge thank you.

Gill Raikes MBE, Chief Executive

Ronnie Woo d and G ill Raikes at Royal B rompton C arols by C andlelight concer t

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// LE T TER FROM THE EDITOR //

L ef t: Ra ch e l , h e r mum an d fr ie n d at L o n d o n B r id ge s walk

LETTER FROM THE EDITOR ello and welcome to our spring/summer edition of News Beat. It’s always exciting to launch new fundraising appeals and this year, we have two very special projects – one, supporting the redevelopment of a Harefield catheter laboratory (page 5) and the other, helping to bring the latest imaging technology to Royal Brompton (pages 8 and 9).

With summer already on the horizon, we’re excited to bring you a calendar packed full of events to

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enjoy on those sunnier days. A nd looking ahead to autumn, we have ever y thing from a firewalk to an open-water swim. So, why not join us and make 2020 the year of new challenges?

Rachel Cresswell, Editor of News Beat

Sharing your story makes a huge difference to our Charity. It inspires others to help us fundraise for our hospitals and provides comfort for other patients and families. By blogging or even video blogging, you can unleash your creative side and support our fight against heart and lung disease at the same time.

Please email the Charity at fundraising@rbht.nhs.uk to get started.

@ r b h c h a r i t y / r b h c h a r i t y. o r g

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// COMPLE TED PROJ EC TS //

COMPLETED PROJECTS T h a n k s to o u r s u p p o r te r s , we’ve b e e n a b l e to co m p l e te t wo lif e - ch a n gin g p ro j e c t s at Roya l B ro m pto n a n d H a re f i e l d H o s p it a l s .

E C M O : L A S T C H A N C E T R E ATM E N T

In our autumn/winter News Beat, we brought you news of our fundraising appeal to raise £150,000 for vital ECMO units at Royal Brompton.

We are just shy of reaching our target however, thanks to your generous support we have already bought one unit with the funds.

Tim Jackson, Head of Perfusion, explains, "ECMO activity within the Trust continues to rise with a 60% increase in bed days last year. To ensure we can support any patient who requires this life-saving treatment, we have borrowed units from the supplier and even called in favours from other hospitals!

We ordered the f irst unit when we had nearly run out of equipment after a tremendous team effort of saving three patients over one weekend."

The Trust continues to push the boundaries of this technology, treating more patients with severe heart failure or those who may

not traditionally be considered for ECMO. We could not be more grateful to all who have supported the Charity so far to help us reach our goal so quickly.

PIONEERING TECHNOLOGY

At the beginning of this year we reached our £200,000 target for our cross-site ‘Transforming Your Care’ appeal, raising funds for an electronic observations system that will revolutionise the way our clinical staff deliver care.

A big thank you to all our supporters, particularly the Kusuma Trust UK who generously pledged to match fund the appeal with a grant of £100,000.

The nurses on Victoria Ward at Royal Brompton explain, “This system can facilitate nurses in spending more time with their patients, giving quality care and an eff icient way of recording accurate information that can be seen by nurses and patients’ medical team.”

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// NE W APPE AL S //

New appea ls: Innovat ing ima g ing Wit h 2020 in f u ll s win g , we’re d e li ghte d to s h a re o u r n ew f u n d r a i s in g a p p e a l s wit h yo u to h e lp in n ov ate im a gin g at b ot h Roya l B ro m pto n a n d H a re f i e l d .

H A R E F I E L D # C AT H L A B 5

We’re raising £500,000 to support the redevelopment of Cath Lab 5 to give Haref ield a laboratory that can facilitate all types of minimally invasive procedures – an ‘everything’ lab to maintain the high demand, housed with the latest equipment making procedures quicker and allowing for a more effective diagnosis and treatment.

Mark Bowers (pictured), Divisional Intervention Lead at Harefield explains, “The Charity’s funding will help make the lab more ergonomic, infection control compliant and give patients a much better overall experience.”

The funds we raise will buy much-needed cardiovascular imaging equipment, that isn’t covered by NHS funding. Not only will this help keep Haref ield at the forefront of the latest imaging technology, but the equipment will utilise a tracking system to monitor the radiation dosages for patients, improving patient safety. Head to rbhcharity.org to find out more.

W H AT I S A C AT H E T E R L A B O R AT O R Y (C AT H L A B ) ?

Cath labs are where minimally invasive procedures are carried out using imaging equipment for diagnosis and treatment. These procedures can include the implantation of pacemakers, angiograms to help diagnose heart conditions and primary angioplasties, which is emergency treatment for a heart attack. It is different from an operating theatre, where you would have surgery under general anaesthetic.

Thank you to every single one of you who has supported our appeals.

Read more about our ongoing projects at rbhcharity.org @ r b h c h a r i t y / r b h c h a r i t y. o r g

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// WHAT ' S NE W? //

Wondering what we’ve been up to the past six months?

SEL F-MON I TOR I NG FOR PEOPL E W I T H C YST IC FI BROSIS

The Sir Jules Thorn Charitable Trust has pledged £150,000 towards our cystic f ibrosis ‘Back in the Driving Seat’ Appeal, helping us to hit our £500,000 fundraising target. The funds will be used to purchase self-monitoring devices to give people with cystic f ibrosis greater control over their condition.

A supporter of the Charity since 2006, we would like to extend a heartfelt thanks to the Sir Jules Thorn Charitable Trust for their continued generosity.

We would like to take this opportunity to congratulate the CF Team (pictured) on their win at the Health Service Journal Partnership Awards on 27 February under the digital innovation category for this project.

FL I PPI N ’ GR E AT PA NC A K E DAY

In February, Harefield Junior School held a very special Pancake Race in aid of the Harefield Cath Lab Appeal. The eggstraordinary event saw teams go against each other relay style while flipping a pancake in a frying pan. Big congratulations to the winning teams and for all the pupils and staff who took part and raised eggcellent £360.

W I N A N U N FORGET TA BL E HOL I DAY

Thanks to Aerotest Limited, we’re giving you the chance to win a luxury tennight holiday to Dubai including two Emirates Business Class flights. Everything raised through this very special raffle will support patients at our hospitals.

Remember, you’ve got to be in it to win it! Go to rbhcharity.org/aerotestdraw

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// WHAT ' S NE W? //

CLOSE TO THE HEART

Coca Cola European Partners generously donated £5,000 towards our #MoreTimesMoreLives ECMO Appeal as part of their Support My Cause initiative.

Helen Hewlett, whose life was saved by ECMO and works for Coca Cola, nominated our Appeal and Charity for the ‘Close to Your Heart’ category. We’d like to say a huge thank you to Helen and Coca-Cola European Partners. Read about Helen’s ECMO treatment journey at rbhcharity.org/helenh-blog.

DI V E H E A D -FI R ST I N TO F U N DR A ISI NG

This year we’ve launched some brand new events to help you get involved with our Charity. On 27 June and 5 September take part in our spectacular tandem skydive!

Head to pages 14 and 15 to f ind out more and for information about our other events this year. We look forward to welcoming you to our #PurpleHeartArmy!

To get a monthly snapshot of our appeals, events and fundraisers,

@ r b h c h a r i t y / r b h c h a r i t y. o r g

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// NEW APPE AL S //

Advancing imaging at Royal Brompton with our appeal to raise £500,000 to buy the latest biplane technology oyal Brompton’s five catheter laboratories (cath labs) carry out 4,000 minimally invasive diagnostic, interventional and treatment procedures each year on patients just weeks old through to adults. Cath Lab 2 is primarily used for paediatric patients, some weighing as little as 740 grams.

T he equipment in Cath Lab 2 urgently needs upg rading and is reliant on our Charity to help fund the latest biplane imaging technolog y for our staff and patients. So this year, we’ve pledged £50 0,0 0 0 towards the Philips Azurion 7 biplane system.

Dr Michael Rigby, consultant

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paediatric cardiologist at Royal Brompton explains, “Biplane imaging provides us with better and more detailed images of patients – better imaging can mean quicker procedures for patients.”

The Philips Azurion 7 means much lower radiation for both patients and staff. Less dye will also be needed to visualise arteries for children, which will have huge implications as they are more prone to kidney damage from contrast agents.

Some of the conditions treated in Cath Lab 2 include patients with a patent ductus ar teriosus, ventricular septal defect and an atrial septal defect – patients just like Sinan.

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// SINAN ’ S S TORY //

Sinan’s stor y S a r a G h a s s e m i te ll s h e r s o n’s sto r y a n d h ow wit h yo u r s u p p o r t , o u r n ew B ip l a n e A p p e a l will h e lp m a ny m o re b a b i e s l ike S in a n . ne early summer morning, when my son Sinan had just turned nine weeks old, I noticed a change in his breathing – it was clear that he was struggling to breathe. I realised he was in respiratory distress and I rushed him to Chelsea and Westminster Hospital. I was reassured not to worry but deep down, I knew there was something seriously wrong when an x-ray of his lungs was taken.

The doctor returned with the results and said that Sinan’s heart had grown too big, taking over two-thirds of the entire chest cavity.

Shaking and terrified, I called my husband. A cardiologist from Royal Brompton Hospital came to perform an echocardiogram. There was a huge amount of fluid surrounding Sinan’s heart which was starting to compress it and affect the heart function. She decided to rush

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my son to Royal Brompton.

Once we arrived, the clinicians took Sinan to the paediatric intensive care unit (PICU).

In the catheter laboratory, they immediately placed a drain into the pericardium of his heart and drained the fluid.

After a few days Sinan was released from PICU and moved to Rose Ward, where he stayed for almost two months.

Here, we met Dr Rigby, whom my husband and I will always be grateful to and forever indebted to.

He helped save my son's life.

Those two months were the hardest months I have ever experienced – my son was so tiny. But I knew he was in the best care and was being

treated by one of the world's best paediatric cardiologists.

Fast forward six months and Sinan is thriving.

His scans have shown a normal heart, no f luid accumulation, and he has the world's cutest and chubbiest cheeks.

To show our gratitude and appreciation to Royal Brompton, my husband and I have donated towards the new biplane equipment, the very latest imaging technology to help treat children, including and especially, tiny babies.

Find out how to get involved at rbhcharity.org/biplane

@ r b h c h a r i t y / r b h c h a r i t y. o r g

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// FUNDR AISER SP OTLIGHT //

A CELEBRATION OF LIFE ndrew Turner was admitted to Harefield Hospital in 2018. He suffered from dilated cardiomyopathy but then developed hear t failure and, sadly, was given only six months to live without inter vention.

T he team at Haref ield decided to treat A ndrew by f itting him w it h a lef t ventricular assist dev ice ( LVA D) to help t he hear t pump.

T he operation was a success, but t he follow ing year, whilst waiting for a hear t transplant, A ndrew unfor tunately lost his battle and passed away.

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As a family, the Turners wanted to give something back to say thank you for the care A ndrew received.

Prior to his death, A ndrew had held a fundraising event in aid of our Charity through his Masonic Lodge in Eastbourne, raising an incredible ÂŁ2,0 0 0 for an LVA D blood pressure machine.

Andrew's son Jordan says, “Harefield is never too far from

J o r d a n Tu r n e r a n d his family have been fundraising for Haref ield Hospital to show their appreciation for the care his father Andrew (above) received

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// FUNDR AISER SP OTLIGHT //

our family’s minds and hearts. So, at dad’s funeral, we decided that instead of f lowers we would ask for donations to the Charity. Our aim was to raise £1,000 which we reached in just 24 hours. In total, we ended up raising £10,000!

“As a family we gain great comfort from doing things for the hospital and Charity and will continue to raise funds for equipment.”

If you’d like to share your fundraising story like Jordan, please get in touch at fundraising@rbht.nhs.uk.

If you have a great fundraising idea up your sleeve and want to talk it through with a member of our team, please get in touch at fundraising@rbht.nhs.uk

NICKY L ANE

MICHAEL WILLIAMS

Last September, Nicky Lane and family and friends of Megan Tofte hosted a ‘Sunflower Ball’ as part of RA IS ED their Missions £27, 389 with Megs fundraising in memory of Megan.

Megan was treated at Royal Brompton all her life as a result of a rare heart condition, Tetralogy of Fallot. After complicated emergency surgery last year, Megan sadly passed away at the age of only 21.

The Ball raised £18,113 for our Charity and to date, Missions for Megs has raised £27,389 through skydives, an event hosted

by Megan’s university colleagues, a charity run and donations which included support from Waitrose Leighton Buzzard.

Michael completed Ironman Wales in aid of Royal Brompton after the outstanding care and treatment mother-in-law Adele Kelland received. Adele was given emergency RA IS ED ECMO treatment after an emergency transfer from Cardiff and spent over two weeks in our care.

Michael said, “Training for the event was long and mostly lonely. Some Saturdays spending up to six hours on a bike and then another two to three hours running. In total, I raised £1,173 – knowing how much was raised gave me the extra motivation to complete the event as quickly as possible finishing with a time of 11:35.48.”

£1,173

RICHARD GARL AND Richard ran the Royal Parks Half Marathon in RA IS ED memory of his good friend and wife of his oldest £2 , 293 friend, Sally Stone who had been treated at Royal Brompton. Originally, Sally’s daughter had planned to run but due to the recent birth of her son and other commitments, Richard (after one too many glasses of wine) both generously and bravely, offered to take her place and run his first half marathon. Together, they raised £2,293. @ r b h c h a r i t y / r b h c h a r i t y. o r g

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// IN THE COMMUNIT Y //

In the community O ur Charit y relies on generous p e ople, groups and organisations within the communit y to supp or t our f ight against hear t and lung disease . Here are a few of our loc al heroe s!

R A IS ED

£1,000

THE KINGS ARMS, HAREFIELD Next-door neighbours to Harefield Hospital, The Kings Arms Pub hosted a charity race night in aid of our ‘Transforming Your Care’ appeal, raising funds for an electronic observation system to support nurses in their day-to-day role.

The evening raised an incredible £1,150. Abby, Bar Manager at the pub said, “We’re always looking for ways to support our local hospital”. The team is hoping to host a charity festival in the summer featuring local bands.

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£1,150

PHOENIX L ADIES CLUB, PINNER Throughout 2019, Phoenix Ladies Club has been fundraising for our Patients’ Fund after one of their former members sadly passed away at Harefield Hospital last year.

The Club held lots of fundraising events throughout 2019, ending the year with a Winter Lunch at Grimsdyke Golf Club, Bushey. In total, they raised £1,000 with Club Chairwoman, Margaret Bailey presenting a cheque to our fundraising team. Thank you for all the hard work ladies!

If you’ve been inspired by our community fundraisers, why not request your own fundraising pack at rbhcharity.org/fundraising-resources 12

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// CORP OR ATE SUPP ORT //

CORPORATE SUPPORT A n anniver sar y to rememb er

RA IS ED

Sue Caulfield, Director of Metro Rod Oxford had her lung transplant at Harefield Hospital in March 2009 and to celebrate her 10year transplant anniversary, she embarked on a series of fundraising activities to mark the special occasion These included coffee mornings and raffles at her workplace Metro Rod – all of which raised over £1,300, overshooting Sue’s £1,000 target! For Sue, it was important to have Metro Rod involved, where she had worked for 20 years, “They’ve supported me through the good and bad.”

In November, the company holds its annual conference with a charity collection and Sue asked for it to be in aid of the hospital that had changed her life. MD of Metro Rod, Peter Molloy and Executive Chairman of Franchise Brands, Stephen

£14, 318

Hemsley even offered to be "apprentices for a day" at one of the company’s depots if they raised £4,000 through donations, the donations came to £7,500. The auction of the MD and CEO raised another incredible £4,500 in a matter of minutes, Stephen Hemsley generously rounded up the total amount raised to £13,000. Sue said,

“Having the organisation behind me was so humbling I was completely blown away by the amount of money they contributed.”

We’d like to give a heartfelt thank you to Sue and Metro Rod. If you’re thinking about getting your organisation involved in fundraising, let us know at fundraising@rbht.nhs.uk.

THANK YOU TO ALL OUR COPORATE SUPPORTERS THIS PAST YEAR Aerotest Limited, Bellway Homes Ltd, British Medical Auction, Burberry Ltd, Coca-Cola Enterprises Ltd, CPC UK LTD, Deloitte LLP, DK Produktions Ltd, Ernst & Young, Executive Alarms Ltd, FSI, Hitachi Capital (UK) PLC, Holland and Holland, Howarth Homes Plc, HSBC plc, Investec Bank plc, J.M.C Engineering, Lee Bolton Monier-Williams, Martin Baker, Metro Rod, Met Serve Ltd, Mitsubishi Electric Europe, Morrison’s – Hatch End, Neptune Building Services Ltd, Pen & Ink Graphics, Pfizer Ltd, Pimco Foundation Europe, QBE EO Foundation, Richard John Hair & Beauty, Robert Cooper Estate Agency, Savills UK, Sky, Standard Chartered Bank, T P S Global Logistics Ltd, Tesco – Rickmansworth and Pinner Green, The Chalfont Printers, The Hungry Hare, The Kings Arms, UK Power Networks Ltd, Vinci Construction UK Ltd, Waitrose – Ruislip, Gerrard’s Cross and Northwood, Wattsway Travel. @ r b h c h a r i t y / r b h c h a r i t y. o r g

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// WHAT ' S ON //

W hat's on?

TH U R S DAY 25 J U N E 2020

SH A K I N ’ ST E V E NS G OL F DAY Denham Golf Club

Have you been practising your putting skills? Now’s the chance to show them off at our annual Charity Golf Day. For the 8th year running we’ll be taking over Denham Golf Club with teams all vying for the title. A delicious three course meal will follow in the clubhouse where we’ll be awarding the winning team and other trophy winners from the day.

S U N DAY 16 AU G U S T 2020

PRU DE N T I A L R I DELON D ON

Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park This 100-mile ride from London and Surrey is no small feat but if you love to cycle and fancy a challenge, it’s the one for you! This is a closed-road event, starting at the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, journeying through the Surrey countryside and finishing on The Mall. We only have seven Charity spaces available, could you be taking one?

S AT U R DAY 11 J U LY 2020

W I NG WA L K Damyns Hall Aerodrome, Essex Take to the skies with this new and exhilarating challenge! Strapped to an authentic 1940s Boeing Stearman biplane, you’ll fly at speeds of up to 135mph and heights of 100 to 700 feet over the course of ten minutes. This is the ultimate thrill-seeking challenge for 2020 and an unforgettable way to raise funds for our Charity.

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// WHAT ' S ON //

S U N DAY 11 O C TO B E R 2020

S AT U R DAY 26 S E P T E M B E R 2020

SW IM SER PEN TIN E Hyde Park

Take the plunge this autumn by swimming across one of London’s famous lakes in an open-water swimming event staged in the Serpentine, Hyde Park. Choose from the classic one-mile or truly test yourself with two full laps in the two-mile swim. A new event for our Charity, we’re expecting places to fill up fast – don’t miss out!

ROYA L PA R K S H A L F M A R AT HON Starting in Hyde Park

Join us this 2020 for the most scenic half marathon around. Journey through four of London’s leafy green Royal Parks for 13.1 miles. This is the perfect challenge for those of you who are bringing along family and friends as not only can they help us cheer you along, but they’ll get to enjoy the Food & Fitness Festival which is running alongside the event.

T H U R S DAY 29 O C T O B E R 2020

FIR EWA LK

The Bear on the Barge, Harefield It’s going to be a hot October! See what you can achieve when you put your mind to it with our Charity Firewalk. After all, if you can walk on fire, we think you can do anything! Fellow supporters and the Charity team will be there to support you throughout, with training given beforehand.

So, are you brave enough to walk barefoot across the embers?

T H U R S D AY 1 2 N O V E M B E R 2 0 2 0

GR E AT BROM P TON QU I Z St Columba’s Church, Chelsea

To sign up for any of our upcoming events, visit: rbhcharity.org/events

Start brushing up on your general knowledge as our renowned Charity Quiz is back for an evening full of fun, laughter and of course, competition!

Join us, NHS staff and Charity supporters and try your hand at winning (what we think is) the greatest quiz of the year. As usual, there’ll be the Great Brompton Raffle and a delicious sausage and mash supper on offer.

@ r b h c h a r i t y / r b h c h a r i t y. o r g

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