The Friends of Warminster Hospital intend to work toward getting a new scanner for the healthcare facility, reported This is Wiltshire on September 5.
The scanner will be of benefit to patients who usually have to travel excessive distances to get treatment for their eye issues at other facilities.
(MacularDegenerations.com) According to the article, the OCT eye scanner, which costs £36,000, is used to monitor age-related macular degeneration (AMD) and glaucoma. However, the closest scanners are at the Royal United Hospital and Salisbury Hospital, which means that people in Warminster are in for a long ride to get necessary scanning treatment. But, if the Friends of Warminster Hospital has the last say, these patients will sooner rather than later be able to have treatments at the area hospital.
Charles Lan, chairman of the Friends of Warminster Hospital, said in the article that getting the OCT eye scanner would be a great strategy to help the many elderly patients who currently have to travel very long distances on a monthly basis — which can also be dangerous with their compromised vision. He noted that the issue, while a “problem nationally,” is particularly problematic in the “south west” region due to the higher percentage of elderly people living there compared to elsewhere in the country. He added in the article that having an OCT eye scanner at the Warminster Hospital will not only benefit patients who don’t have to travel so far, but also benefit other hospitals that are presently a tad “overburdened” by the increased demand.
According to the article, the Friends of Warminster Hospital are putting their money where their mouth is by ponying up some of the funds needed to acquire the OCT eye scanner. They will also request that the town council, local opticians, the area board and the public make contributions towards the purchase of the machine. According to the article, Friends of Warminster Hospital place donation envelopes around Warminster so that people who want to contribute can do so. Donation envelopes can be found at local surgeries, the hospital, the Civic Centre and the Information Centre.
Warminister, a town situated in Wiltshire, England, sits between Bath and Salisbury.
Reference: http://www.thisiswiltshire.co.uk/news/9911445.Warminster_Friends_eye_up_scanner/
Leave a Reply