Children, families and NHS staff at the Royal Hospital for Children and Young People (RHCYP) were treated to a special Christmas surprise when players from Heart of Midlothian FC came to visit.
Captain Craig Gordon and the first team squad spread lots of festive joy when they made their way around the hospital, meeting and speaking with some of their biggest fans on the wards and handing out Christmas goodies.
The annual visit is organised by NHS Lothian and Edinburgh Children’s Hospital Charity (ECHC). This is the first time the Hearts players have been able to visit the hospital in person since 2019 due to Covid, making the occasion even more memorable.
Craig said: “This is an important day in our calendar and we are delighted to be able to visit everyone in person once again.
“Christmas is a special time of year but, unfortunately, not everyone is lucky enough to spend it at home, happy and healthy with family and friends.
“That it why this visit is really meaningful, because it affords us the chance to give something back and to, hopefully, put some smiles on some faces and spread some Christmas cheer.”
ECHC runs a programme of daily fun activities throughout December to make sure no one spending the season in hospital misses out on the magic of Christmas. So far, children and their families have been entertained by Santa abseiling into the building, a silent disco around the wards and a live pipe band, with plenty more still to come.
Pippa Johnston, Director at ECHC, said: “The Hearts team’s visit to the hospital always provides a real boost to children, families and staff so it is marvellous to be able to welcome them back in person. Some of the children are avid Hearts supporters so really enjoy the opportunity to meet and take photos with their favourite players and get some Hearts goodies too.
“Every year, together with our friends at NHS Lothian, ECHC works hard to make time spent in hospital a little bit brighter. We rely solely on donations and kindness to be able to do this, so we are enormously grateful to Hearts for taking time out of their busy schedule to visit those facing a hospital stay this Christmas.”
To find out more about ECHC’s Redirected Letters to Santa Christmas appeal and to donate, visit www.echcharity.org/donate
Children and their families at Edinburgh’s Royal Hospital for Children and Young People were visited by storytelling and performance duo Macastory as part of the Scottish Friendly Children’s Book Tour on Friday (9 December).
Macastory shared songs and stories in an interactive event for the children in attendance. The tour is run by Scottish Book Trust, the national charity changing lives through reading and writing, and sponsored by Scottish Friendly.
Alongside the event, children at the hospital and their families were gifted books by Scottish Book Trust to keep and enjoy. These were gifted as part of Scottish Book Trust’s Christmas appeal, which is fundraising to help gift and distribute books to families across Scotland during the festive period through food banks, hospitals, and other community spaces. Books bring comfort, joy, and escapism, and the initiative aims to bring the magic of books to families most in need this Christmas – especially in light of the ongoing cost-of-living crisis.
The Scottish Friendly Children’s Book Tour takes brilliant authors and illustrators to schools in all areas of Scotland for fully-funded events that hope to inspire a lifelong love of reading and writing in pupils.
Marc Lambert, CEO of Scottish Book Trust, said: ‘We’re delighted to have been able to return to Edinburgh Children’s Hospital with the Scottish Friendly Children’s Book Tour, this time for a fun-filled event with Macastory in time for Christmas.
‘Bringing the magic of stories and books to children in hospital is hugely important – books can provide comfort and pleasure as well as improve overall wellbeing. Alongside today’s event, we were glad to be able to gift books to children in hospital and their families thanks to the generous support of the public.’
Fiona O’Sullivan, Director of Children’s Wellbeing at Edinburgh Children’s Hospital Charity, said:“It was wonderful to welcome Macastory to the hospital for this fantastic event. Storytelling is so powerful; being transported to another time or place can be so beneficial for children when they are unwell.
“No one wants to be in hospital at any time, but at Christmas it can be especially hard, so we are enormously grateful to Macastory for bringing lots of fun and distraction to the wards and waiting areas.’
Macastory, comprising storytellers Ron Fairweather and Fergus McNicol, said before the event: ‘We are delighted to have been invited by the Scottish Book Trust to be involved in the Christmas programme at Edinburgh Children’s Hospital.
“It’s a great way for us to bring our Christmas storytelling to kids who otherwise might miss out on this type of fun at this time of year. So we’ve picked our favourite Christmas tales to bring to the kids, families and staff at the hospital and we can’t wait to create some Christmas cheer for everyone to enjoy!’
A mum whose daughter fell into a scalding bath when she was just three-years-old has urged other parents to be aware of the dangers of burns.
Little Courtney, now seven, spent years battling back to full health after she suffered devastating burns to more than a quarter of her body.
The schoolgirl, from Kirkcaldy, had to undergo numerous painful procedures and physiotherapy at the Royal Hospital for Children and Young People (RHCYP) in Edinburgh following the accident.
Now on “Burns Awareness Day” (12th October), her mum, Chloe Abrahams, is warning other parents to be aware of potential burns hazards around the home.
Chloe said: “I would never have thought that tap water could burn so badly.
“The pain Courtney went through just from lifting her into a different position on the hospital bed still breaks my heart when I think about it. Seeing my daughter in that state was the worst thing I’ve ever been through.”
Courtney’s accident happened in 2018. She was reaching for a toy when she tumbled into a bath that was filling with scalding water.
Chloe said: “We heard horrendous screams and found that Courtney had fallen into a scalding hot bath. I quickly scooped her out of the bath, stripped her clothes off and wrapped her in a wet towel.She was covered in massive bulging blisters and we rushed her to hospital. But at this point, I didn’t realise how much damage had already been done.”
Courtney was immediately transferred to the high dependency unit in the Royal Hospital for Children and Young People (RHCYP) where she was sent to theatre every few days to get her burns scrubbed and redressed to prevent any infections.
Her little thighs and feet received the worst damage as her socks and pants had held the scalding water close to her skin.
After being released from hospital, Courtney’s feet had to stay bandaged for over a month, meaning that she was struggling to walk for up to two months.
She received regular physiotherapy alongside numerous other appointments for over a year to aid her recovery and to help with the inevitable scarring.
Chloe added: “I honestly can’t thank all the amazing doctors and nurses at the RHCYP enough. Courtney is now seven and is doing great. She has lots of scars but she doesn’t let them define her.
“I would like other families to know that you can turn the water temperature down on your boiler. If we had known that – things might have been different for us.”
According to the Burns and Plastics Clinic at the RHCYP, burns are the most common household injury with over 7,000 children suffering serious burns or scalds in the UK in 2021.
As Halloween and bonfire night approaches Rosie Bainsfair, Burns & Plastics Nurse Specialist at the RHCYP, said: “Many of the children we see at the RHCYP in Edinburgh are injured in accidents around the house, involving very common things like hot drinks, irons or hair straighteners.
“If your child has a burn or scald, follow this simple ‘STOP’ first aid advice:
“Strip clothes, jewellery or nappies off (unless they are stuck to the skin).
“Turn on a cold tap or shower and run the burn under cool water for 20 minutes whilst keeping the child warm. Do not use ice.
“Organise medical assistance – attend A and E or dial 999.
“Protect the burn with cling film, provide painkillers and keep the child warm.”
To find out more about how you can prevent burns from happening at home, please visit the Royal Society For The Prevention Of Accidents website here.
NHS Lothian’s Royal Hospital for Children and Young People is ready to celebrate a very special birthday today – Wednesday 23 March – marking one year since the world-class facilities fully opened.
The services moved to the new site from the old ‘Sick Kids’ gradually, with outpatients arriving in July 2020, CAMHS in January 2021 and finally the remaining services including inpatients and A&E in March that same year.
The building and facilities provide a world-class centre for child healthcare, enabling NHS Lothian to continue to build on the excellent reputation for trusted, quality care delivered by dedicated and expert teams.
To commemorate the birthday, activities have been arranged with both patients and staff in mind, and with generous support from a range of partners including Edinburgh and Lothians Health Foundation, Edinburgh Children’s Hospital Charity and Ronald McDonald House.
This includes the distribution of birthday-themed craft boxes with decorations for all wards; a birthday-themed projection on to the building; a drop-in photo booth; a birthday party with stalls, activities and live performances; complementary therapy & pampering sessions for families staying at Ronald McDonald House and treats for all staff which will distributed across each ward.
Allister Short, Service Director, Women’s and Children’s Services, NHS Lothian said, “The Royal Hospital for Children and Young people offers one of the most modern and best-designed children’s healthcare facilities in the world.
“I hope over the last twelve months, both patients and their families have been able to see what this means and the positive impact it has both for patient care and wellbeing.”
For the Simpson family from Torphichen near Bathgate, the facilities on offer not only help to provide a degree or normality but make a huge difference to the happiness of daughter Robyn.
Mum Michelle explained that the family have been in and out of hospital with Robyn ever since she was born, with the longest stay being four months.
She said, “It is really hard to have a child that is unwell. It places a real strain on you both physically, mentally and emotionally. Coming to the Royal Hospital for Children and Young People makes things just that bit easier – it’s bright, spacious and airy – feeling more like a hotel than a hospital.
“There are so many spaces especially for children and so many activities that they can get involved in – from art and craft to music. Seeing Robyn happy, even though she is in hospital, is incredible. It enables her to be a child rather than just a patient.”
Allister said, “The facilities on offer across the Royal Hospital for Children and Young People are truly incredible, however the services wouldn’t be anything without our talented and dedicated staff.
“Day-in-day-out they deliver so much to ensure the children and young people attending the hospital receive the very best care and support.”
Michelle added, “I can’t thank the staff enough. They offer so much support and reassurance as well as incredible care. It really does help to make it feel like a home from home whenever we’re here.”
For more information on The Royal Hospital for Children and Young People and the facilities that are available visit –children.nhslothian.scot.
To keep up to date with the latest news from across Lothian’s Children’s Services, follow them on social media – LothianChildHealth on Facebook and @LothianChildren on Twitter.
Meanwhile, demolition of the old Sick Kids continues …
Local charity, Young Lives vs Cancer, has been named as one of three winners for Dobbies’ Not Your Average Community competition.
The nationwide contest, run by the UK’s leading garden centre retailer, invited community groups, clubs, charities and neighbourhoods to apply and tell the Dobbies’ team about the work they are doing in their local areas and what they would do with the prize – £1,000 to spend in their local store on Christmas trees, lights and decorations
Dobbies were inundated with entries from across the country, reading heart-warming stories about the incredible work being carried out by dedicated volunteers and community workers, and had a difficult job selecting the three winners.
Young Lives vs Cancer at Ciaran’s House was a very worthy winner, providing accommodation to families whose children are receiving cancer treatment at the Royal Hospital for Children and Young People. The families are able to stay as long as required and siblings can also stay in Edinburgh.
In their winning entry, the charity told how they wanted to transform the nine-bedroom house with trees, lights, wreaths and decorations for the families to decorate their own rooms and communal living space with their prize.
A member of the Edinburgh Dobbies’ team met with Mandy Tait, House Manager and Sandra Fox, Deputy Manager from the Ciaran’s House team to help them select the best products for their requirements, as well as treating them to Christmas Afternoon Tea in the restaurant.
Mandy Tait and Sandra Fox, said: “A huge thank you to the lovely team at Dobbies, not only for selecting us as winners, but for being so supportive and helpful while we selected our festive decorations.
“Dressing the house will make a massive difference to the team working there and those spending time with us this December.”
Graeme Jenkins, CEO of Dobbies, said: “A huge congratulations to Young Lives vs Cancer at Ciaran’s House for winning our Not Your Average Community campaign this year.
“The work they do is inspirational and we’re proud to be able to help them spread some festive cheer during what will be a difficult time for many.
“A huge thank you to everyone who entered our Not Your Average Community campaign. It was wonderful to see so many great projects taking place across Edinburgh and beyond.”
For more information on Not Your Average Community:
The Moderator of the General Assembly Lord Jim Wallace has embarked on a ten-day schedule to learn more about the life and work of the Church of Scotland in Edinburgh.
Lord Wallace said he is looking forward to attending events organised by the Presbytery of Edinburgh which will see him meet people from all walks of life and learn how they have coped during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Presbytery visits provide Moderators with an opportunity to offer encouragement and support to church members and the communities they serve.
Due to the lockdown, this is the first fully in-person visit to take place since 2019.
Lord Wallace, Moderator of the General Assembly
Lord Wallace, a QC and former MP and MSP, said the city is close to his heart. “I am very much looking forward to my first presbytery visit, not least because it is Edinburgh where I went to university, trained as a lawyer, practiced as a lawyer, sat in the Scottish Parliament and where I met my wife, Rosie,” he said.
“I am very grateful to the presbytery for putting together a very comprehensive programme, which will allow me to engage with a whole range of people who reflect my interests and background.”
Candidates
The programme will see Lord Wallace visit churches, hospitals, universities and a prison and meet ordinary church members, politicians, senior figures in the judiciary, ministers, chaplains and interfaith and ecumenical leaders.
Lord Wallace was ordained as an elder at what was St Bernard’s Church in Stockbridge in 1981. It is now called Stockbridge Parish Church and Lord Wallace joined the congregation there yesterday (above).
In the evening, the Moderator led worship at Holy Trinity Church in Wester Hailes.
Lord Wallace will meet with Councillor Frank Ross, Lord Provost of Edinburgh, at the City Chambers today and will later attend an event at New College to mark their 175th Anniversary and meet candidates for the ministry.
This evening, the Moderator will attend a civic event at the City Chambers for members of the Edinburgh Area Children’s Panel who make sure that a young person is at the heart of legal decisions that affect them.
Many church members are involved in this work and Lady Wallace, who will be accompanying her husband, was a panel member for many years until recently.
Courts and prison
On Tuesday, Lord Wallace, who is currently sitting on the non-affiliated benches in the House of Lords, is visiting the Charteris Centre run by Greyfriars Kirk, which is based in a refurbished church building at The Pleasance which is nearing completion.
It is a social enterprise initiative which seeks to provide a place for connection with communities of all kinds.
Afterwards he will visit Edinburgh Sheriff Court and Justice of the Peace Courts to hear more about the administration of justice, especially during the pandemic.
Lord Wallace will then travel to HMP Edinburgh in the Saughton area of the city where he will be given a tour and introduced to staff, prisoners and the chaplains who support them.
On Wednesday, he will visit Napier University’s Sighthill campus where he will meet Principal Andrea Nolan and be given a tour of the Clinical Centre in School of Health and Social Care.
He will meet staff, students, members of the university’s chaplaincy team and Professor Gary Hutchinson and Liz Aston from the School of Applied Sciences to discuss work with Scottish Institute For Policing Research.
In the afternoon, the Moderator will visit the Granton Goes Greener project at Granton Parish Church to learn more about an innovative clothes upcycling project which is part of work to reduce consumption as part of efforts to tackle the climate crisis.
He will later attend a special Presbytery service in St Giles Cathedral on the Royal Mile, which will be attended by the church’s ecumenical and interfaith partners, as well as national and civic leaders, and will be followed by a reception in Parliament Hall which will bring people from the worlds of religion, politics and legal profession together.
On Thursday, the Moderator is visiting Edinburgh Airport with Rev Moira MacDonald, minister of Corstorphine Old Parish Church and Workplace Chaplain, Esther Elliot, to hear about the work of workplace chaplains.
He will later meet with the Principal of the University of Edinburgh and visit the law school – the place where he studied – to speak with students and staff.
Frontline chaplains
In the evening, the Moderator will attend a Presbyterial Guild event in Craiglockhart Parish Church, speaking on the theme of “Look forward in Faith”.
On Friday, he is visiting the Royal Blind School, the Royal Hospital for Children and Young People and will attend an evening reception at Edinburgh Castle for chaplains who serve in a wide variety of contexts – hospitals, the military, universities and the workplace.
Lord Wallace said: “I am looking forward to meeting people engaged in chaplaincy, many of whom have been at the front line during the COViD-19 crisis.
“I will be very much in listening mode and hope to provide them with encouragement.”
Polwarth Parish Church is the Moderator’s next stop where, on Saturday, he will visit the new All Aboard canal boat that the congregation jointly own with a charity called People Know How.
It is used for spiritual and educational pursuits on the Union Canal, which links Edinburgh and Falkirk.
The Moderator will take part in worship at Tron, Moredun and Gilmerton Church on Sunday and join members of Leith Churches for a special service in the evening.
He will visit the Richmond’s Hope bereavement project for children and young people at Richmond Craigmillar Church the following day.
Very Rev Dr Derek Browning, Moderator of Edinburgh Presbytery, said: “We are looking forward to welcoming Lord Wallace.
“Presbytery visits allow Moderators to meet local Christians and gain a wider perspective of how the Church, and the communities we support, engage.”
£5 million to help families be there for children in hospital
A new fund has been launched to help families with the costs of visiting and providing essential care for their children in hospital.
The Young Patients Family Fund will support the parents and siblings of young inpatients by covering expenses for travel, food and overnight accommodation where necessary.
Initial investment of £5 million has been set aside for the fund, although actual spend will depend on demand.
Public Health Minister Maree Todd launched the fund at the Royal Hospital for Children and Young People in Edinburgh, where she met with Deborah Robertson whose 10-year-old son Zak is an inpatient receiving treatment for Cystic Fibrosis.
Ms Todd said: “When a hospital stay is necessary, families want to focus on the health and wellbeing of their child, without the worry of the financial costs around being there for them.
“This fund will provide support when it is most needed, and is an extension of our Neonatal Expenses Fund, which covers costs for the parents of sick or premature newborn babies.
“The Young Patients Family Fund extends the support to cover the families of all inpatients from birth up to the age of 18.”
Associate Director of Policy, Influencing and Voice at the charity Young Lives vs Cancer Helen Gravestock said: “When a child is diagnosed with cancer, the whole family’s world turns upside down.
“Parents often have to stop working, children can be taken out of school and suddenly they have to travel miles for life-saving treatment. The last thing they should be worrying about is how to afford the petrol to be by their child’s bedside.
“On average, families spend an extra £600 every month while their child is having cancer treatment.
“The Young Patients Family Fund will be very much welcomed by children and young people with cancer and their families. Young Lives vs Cancer looks forward to working with colleagues in Scotland to ensure that all eligible families can benefit from it.”
NHS Lothian’s Service Director for Women’s and Children’s Services Allister Short, said: “When a child or young person requires a stay in hospital, it can be a really challenging time for them and their family, and anything that helps to reduce this stress is a really welcome step.
“This new fund really will make a big difference for families not just here in Lothian, but across Scotland.”
Bliss Scotland Chief Executive, Caroline Lee-Davey, said: “This new fund will now mean that parents of premature and sick babies who need hospital care once their neonatal treatment is over will continue to be supported throughout their hospital journey.
“We will continue to work with the Scottish Government to ensure the Fund meets the needs of families and will keep campaigning for the other UK nations to introduce similar support for families with a baby in neonatal care.”
· This is the first time MRI-guided Laser Interstitial Thermal Therapy (LITT) will be available in Scotland
· The surgery is currently only available at Great Ormond Street Hospital in London or in Houston, Texas
· The current surgery choice in Edinburgh is open brain surgery, which is around seven hours and leaves an ear to ear scar. LITT will reduce this to two hours and is much less invasive
· Children and young people who will be referred for this surgery have refractory (medication resistant) epilepsy and can have up to 100 ‘drop down’ seizures a day
· In appropriately selected cases, LITT surgery can stop seizures entirely and cure the child’s epilepsy
Children and young people living with severe epilepsy in Scotland will have the life-changing chance to be seizure free, thanks to the funding of a world class laser coming to Edinburgh’s new children’s hospital.
A partnership between the Welch Trust, Edinburgh Children’s Hospital Charity (ECHC) and NHS Lothian is bringing MRI-guided Laser Interstitial Thermal Therapy (LITT) for Edinburgh’s Royal Hospital for Children and Young People (RHCYP) – the first time this laser technology will be available in Scotland.
LITT is a new and proven, minimally invasive treatment which uses a laser to remove brain tissue that is causing seizures. Children and young people who will be referred for laser surgery are diagnosed with refractory (medication resistant) epilepsy; they may experience severe and frequent ‘drop down’ seizures, up to 100 in one day. In appropriately selected cases, laser surgery can stop seizures entirely and cure the child’s epilepsy.
LITT surgery treatment is currently only available at Great Ormond Street Hospital (GOSH) and in Houston, Texas. The laser equipment will be part of the Scottish National Paediatric Epilepsy Surgery Service, based at the RHCYP in Edinburgh, meaning children will come to the capital from all over Scotland to have the surgery.
The current surgery choice practiced in Edinburgh is open brain surgery, which lasts around seven hours, has a longer recovery time and results in a scar across the top of the child’s head.
The LITT precision technology will reduce this surgery time to around two hours, is much less invasive and has a shorter recovery time. It is expected that up to six children a year could benefit from the laser surgery, aged from infants to adolescents, with a similar number of adults also benefitting annually.
Following a request from the National Epilepsy Surgery Service to ECHC to support this initiative, the charity identified the Welch Trust as the ideal funder and agreed a partnership to make this project a reality.
Victoria Welch, Trustee of the Welch Trust, said: “We are very proud to be able to gift this LITT technology to the new Royal Hospital for Children and Young People. As a Paediatric Nurse, I understand the importance of having the best equipment in the hospital to expedite the curing of patients with complicated conditions and ultimately save lives.
“When we were made aware of this need, we didn’t have to think too long about it. Our focus continues to be to invest in high impact programmes that save lives or significantly improve the quality of life for very sick or terminally ill children. We look forward to continuing our partnership with the Edinburgh Children’s Hospital Charity and expanding our support across other areas of critical care.”
Roslyn Neely, CEO of Edinburgh Children’s Hospital Charity, said: “With the new children’s hospital now open, we are thrilled to have partnered with the Welch Trust to bring the world-class LITT equipment to Scotland for the first time.
“It is always very satisfying for us to be able to join with another funder who have a similar desire to support the hospital with projects that will transform children’s health.
“Having the laser surgery available in Edinburgh gives families more choice in their place of care and means they will no longer need to endure the financial and emotional cost of national or international travel and separation at a very stressful time. It will also place Edinburgh and NHS Lothian on the map as a world-leading provider of epilepsy surgery and treatment.”
Dr Edward Doyle, Associate Medical Director, Women and Children’s Services, NHS Lothian said: “Across NHS Lothian, we continually look at new and emerging technology and treatments to see how they could benefit our patients.
“We are delighted that through the support of both the Welch Trust and Edinburgh Children’s Hospital Charity, we will be the first in Scotland and only the second location in the whole of the UK to offer LITT surgery.
“Severe epilepsy can be very difficult to live with and puts an enormous strain on families. Having a world-class cutting edge treatment option available here in Lothian, which is both less invasive and which reduces recovery time, will make a huge difference to lives of children and their families across Scotland.
“This treatment really does have the potential to transform lives and our teams at the Royal Hospital for Children and Young People are delighted that they will soon be able to offer it as a treatment option.”
The new laser equipment is compatible with the intra-operative MRI suite at the RHCYP. It is expected to arrive in summer 2021, followed by a period of intensive training prior to the first surgery taking place.
Lord Brodie, Chair of the Scottish Hospitals Inquiry, visited the now vacant Royal Hospital for Sick Children in Edinburgh last week as part of the Inquiry’s information gathering work.
Visiting the site of the hospital more commonly known as the Sick Kids, at Sciennes, Lord Brodie met with NHS Lothian staff and was given a COVID-19 compliant tour of the wards.
This included the haematology and oncology department, paediatric intensive care unit, surgical and critical care wards and A&E. Lord Brodie also visited ‘PJ’s Loft’ to see the facilities that were available to families accompanying their children during hospital stays.
The independent Inquiry is investigating the delayed opening of the new Royal Hospital for Children and Young People and Department of Clinical Neurosciences (RHCYP/DCN) at Little France. As part of its work, the Inquiry wishes to establish what impact the delay had on patient care and treatment.
Public hearings are scheduled to take place from 20 September and will focus on the experiences of patients and families and how they were affected by issues at the Edinburgh hospital, as well as the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital campus in Glasgow.
A remote procedural hearing is planned for 22 June where Lord Brodie will set out details of how the autumn hearings will operate.
Lord Brodie said: “This visit was important to give context to how the hospital and its staff dealt with the delayed move to the new Royal Hospital for Children and Young People. As we continue our work, being able to relate to the space, layout and operation of the Sick Kids helps the Inquiry better understand the experience of staff, families and patients.
“I have said from the start, one of the priorities of this Inquiry is to understand the experiences of affected patients and their families and so this visit proved vital.
“As we prepare for our September hearings, I continue to call on anyone who has relevant experience or information in relation to the delayed opening of the new Royal Hospital for Children and Young People to get in touch.
“We want to understand what went wrong, whether these issues could have been prevented and what impact they had on patient care. The witness engagement and support team is on hand to guide individuals through the process and answer any questions.
“Our investigations will inform recommendations aimed at ensuring that past mistakes don’t happen again in future NHS infrastructure projects.”
Relevant information can be shared by calling the Inquiry’s dedicated phone line on 0808 196 5000 between 8:30am and 5:00pm Monday to Friday or email:
The replacement Sick Kids hospital will fully open at last this month, Health Secrtary Jeane Freeman announced today.
Answering a question from Edinburgh Pentlands SNP MSP Gordon MacDonald, Ms. Freeman said: “NHS Lothian have now received the final validation reports for the Royal Hospital for Children and Young People remedial works and they are all satisfactory.
“I am therefore pleased to confirm that NHS Lothian will proceed with the migration of outpatients in the week commencing 22 March, this migration plan has been designed in collaboration with the support of medical, nursing and support services such as Laboratories, Radiology and Theatres.
“This is the final phase of the plan and from that date, all relevant clinical services will be delivered from the new hospital.
“I want to record my thanks to all those involved in delivering a project that has resulted in a safe hospital for the patients, families and staff of NHS Lothian.”
Lothian Conservative MSP Miles Briggs said:“The opening of the Royal hospital for Sick Children has been a long time coming and I am pleased for families in Edinburgh and the Lothian’s that it has finally arrived.
“I hope that the new hospital will be a centre of excellence for treating children and young people in the region for a long time to come.
“All the best to NHS Lothian paediatric staff in their overdue new home.”
NHS Lothian confirmed that the new Royal Hospital for Children and Young People will fully open on Tuesday 23 March.
From this date, the remaining Children’s services presently located at Sciennes, including A&E, will move to the stunning and world-class Royal Hospital for Children and Young People located next to the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh at Little France.
The new facilities are already home to the majority of the Children’s Outpatient services and the Department of Clinical Neurosciences (DCN), which both migrated to the Little France site in July 2020. Earlier this year, the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service (CAMHS) inpatient facilities and some outpatient services also moved to the new hospital.
The Royal Hospital for Children and Young People will deliver local, regional and national services in some of the most modern and best-designed healthcare facilities in the world.
With the new facilities connected to the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh, paediatric care, specialist neonatal care, neurosciences and both Emergency Departments are now all on the same site. This reduces the need for emergency transfers between hospitals, and ensures that our teams can share skills and expertise for the benefit of all our patients.
Calum Campbell, Chief Executive, NHS Lothian said, “I am delighted to announce that the new Royal Hospital for Children and Young People will fully open on the 23 March 2021, bringing world class clinical facilities to the people of Lothian.
“Our wish for this project was for it to be designed in collaboration with patients and their families, as well as our staff, and the facilities that are available within the Royal Hospital for Children and Young People are testament to the success of that approach.
“The spaces are welcoming, but also fun; intended to put children and young people at ease at a time when they might otherwise be frightened, unsure or upset. The designed space is complemented by the inclusion of the latest clinical thinking and technology, enabling our teams to provide the best treatment and care for our patients not just now, but for years to come.”
The full opening of the site, follows a commissioning stage, where the remaining facilities were extensively checked, equipment was tested and staff orientation took place.
Ms Susan Goldsmith, Director of Finance and Executive Lead for the project explained that a huge amount of work had taken place to get to this point. Ms Goldsmith said, “Many teams and individuals have helped with this incredibly important project and I would like to take a moment to express my thanks to them all for their diligence and commitment.
“I am delighted that the remaining services will soon move to the Royal Hospital for Children and Young People. It will be a fantastic moment to see the building fully open and for our patients to benefit from the amazing facilities that are on offer.”
The remaining Children’s Services that are presently located at the Royal Hospital for Sick Children at Sciennes will move to the new hospital by Tuesday 23 March.
From 8am on Tuesday 23 March, all patients and any child or young person requiring access to A&E, must go to the new Royal Hospital for Children and Young People at Little France.
The new hospital includes:
Children’s Emergency Department, next to the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh Adult Emergency Department
242 Beds
10 Theatres
10 Wards (Inpatient and Day Care)
Therapy departments
Outpatients
Outdoor play areas
Physical and mental health specialities on one site
Modern Imaging equipment
An Art and Therapeutic Design programme worth over £5million, which enhances the environment and experience of the hospital. This programme has been funded by Edinburgh Children’s Hospital Charity (www.ECHCharity.org) and Edinburgh and Lothians Health Foundation (www.elhf.co.uk)
Ronald McDonald House (accommodation for families of paediatric patients)
