Since February, ACT – the dedicated charity for Addenbrooke’s and the Rosie hospitals – has been asking the local community to back the Big Push to help it raise £150,000 towards modernisation and expansion of the Rosie. All cash raised will help fund vital extra equipment to help give local newborn babies the best possible start in life.
With the Big Push due to run until the end of the year, ACT is calling on local people to help out while having some festive fun – perhaps by fundraising at a Christmas fair, having a collection at a carol concert, selling mince pies at work or hosting a Christmas cake sale at school.
Michelle Gray, Head of Community Fundraising at ACT, said: “Our eyes are firmly focused on hitting our Big Push fundraising target by the end of 2012. So many people have kindly rallied round this year and with just a few weeks to go we are urging everyone to push on and help out in the run up to Christmas. It’s a busy time, but every extra penny donated now will help make a difference to benefit new babies, their mums and families in our community. Whether you want to deck the halls for a special event or simply buy a pack of Rosie Christmas cards, it will all help to make a difference to local families for years to come.”
Rosie Christmas cards are available in packs of ten for £5.00 per pack from the ACT office on the Addenbrooke’s site across the road from A&E or from the Rosie Hospital reception. They can also be ordered online at www.act4addenbrookes.org.uk/christmascards or by calling 01223 217757.
For anyone seeking additional inspiration about fundraising, there are lots of easy ways to get involved – for ideas and more details about the Rosie Hospital Campaign please go to: www.therosiecampaign.org.uk
About the Rosie Hospital Campaign
The Rosie Hospital is recognised as one of the finest maternity hospitals in the country. Supported by charitable funding, the Rosie opened in 1983, since when much has changed. It was designed for approximately 4,000 births a year. In 2010-11 almost 5,800 babies were born at the Rosie and by 2020 that number is expected to increase to 7,500.
The new three-storey extension that opened in September 2012 has doubled the size of the existing maternity unit. It means the Rosie can continue to offer pregnant women, their families and new babies the very best standard of care. New facilities include:
· A brand new midwife-led birth centre with ten en-suite rooms for women with a low risk pregnancy
· An expanded Neonatal Intensive Care Unit with capacity for 58 cots for babies born early or that need specialist attention
· New ‘home from home’ accommodation with eight en-suite bedrooms, a rest area and kitchen for parents with babies in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit
· A new Fetal Medicine and Day Assessment Unit for monitoring pregnant women and fetal development
· A dedicated counselling suite offering professional support when outcomes are not as planned.
For patients and staff these new world-class resources will make an enormous day-to-day difference. The extra space will enable staff to help more women give birth in the comfort of their local hospital. The transformed Rosie will be a regional centre of clinical excellence for training and will aim to set new standards of care by advancing antenatal and neonatal development through research.
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