New £21m rehabilitation centre in Southampton designed to reduce pressure on hospitals
ITV News Meridian's Siri Hampapur has been to have a look around a new multi-million pound rehab centre.
Physiotherapy patients say they have new-found hope for recovery after a £21m rehabilitation centre has opened.The clinical team at Western Community Hospital in Southampton gave their views on what features they wanted to see at the new on-site rehab centre.
It has been designed to help patients recovery quickly and free up space on acute hospital wards.
The site, funded by Hampshire and Isle of Wight Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust, is thought to be the first of its kind in the area.
The rooms have been built with features to reduce patient injuries and improve mental wellbeing. The rehab centre also has a gym, kitchen, restaurant, day area and courtyard.
The lead architect behind the build has spoken about why the rooms have been designed this way.
Mark Maffey, Architect and Estates Project Manager at Hampshire and Isle of Wight NHS Foundation Trust said: "From the outset we've been working with the clinical teams who have provided us the brief for almost everything we've done in the building.
"The single bedrooms are a good example of that, as we know that by placing the bed on the same side of the room as the en-suite, there will be fewer slips and trips and falls.
"We also know that by giving patients a view of the outside world and of nature, it will help them recover quicker."
The kitchen area on-site is used to help patients get back into daily routines and take on day-to-day tasks, such as making a cup of tea of making breakfast.
Consultant Geriatrician Lauren Webb said: "It allows patients to really test what they can do for themselves.
"As part of the right to rehab as we all have, we want our patients to get as good as possible and back to as much independence as they can.
"Quite a few patients come in here and do their tea assessments, some of them make their breakfast. They’ve been able to make it in a real kitchen environment, just like home."
One of the patients at the centre, Amy Leneve, is now looking forward to the future.
By making sure people are well-equipped to go back into their daily routines, it is hoped fewer patients will re-injure themselves after being discharged and need to go back to hospital.
David Haydn Thomas, who is one of the first patients at the rehab centre, said: "The first day I came here I saw they had a restaurant, 'The Grove', I went and had a cup of tea and I sat outside.
"I've been in hospital for so long, I realised I hadn't been outside."
20-year-old university student Amy Leneve is in recovery for a spinal injury after an accident while trampolining abroad.
Amy Leneve said: "I've been doing physio everyday since I got here. My goal is to be out by Christmas, I'm sure that would be everyone's goal. But in the long-run I want to go back to university, I want to complete that.
"I want to get up and walking again and get a semi-normal life back and not let this get the best of me."
With 50 beds on-site, the centre will be able to help hundreds of patients each year. The ground floor is also under construction, which will later see 20 more beds - taking the centre's capacity up to 70.
The wards at Western Community Hospital means it is now operating as the South of England Rehabilitation Centre (SERC).
Patients will therefore have access to a range of treatments and services under one roof, and staff will have better opportunities for experience and development.
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