Construction
work on a charitably funded £1.5 million palliative and supportive care centre
in Norfolk has completed on time and on budget.
The new palliative
information and supportive care centre at the James Paget University Hospital was
handed over by main contractor ISG and LSI Architects on Thursday 13 December. Construction
work on the Louise Hamilton Centre started back in March 2012.
The Palliative Care East appeal was launched back in 2006 with the aim of providing Great Yarmouth and Waveney with a support centre
that will help people with incurable illnesses such as cancer, respiratory,
neurological, and cardiac diseases.
The
centre will open in January and will see a phased opening of services designed
to support the needs of carers and patients with life-limiting illnesses. A
range of organisations working in partnership will provide services: from the
NHS, to local charities, patient support groups, and bereavement groups.
The
centre will be about living life. Many people need help to live as full a life
as possible when they have an incurable condition. The Louise Hamilton Centre
will provide them with access to support and advice and will also signpost them
to appropriate community services.
Chairman
of the James Paget University Hospital, David Wright, said: “The centre is
absolutely stunning and the architects and builders have done a fantastic job.
The centre will make such a difference, not only to patients with incurable
diseases but also to carers, friends and families”.
LSI Architects Associate partner Peter Durrant
said: “We are delighted the people of Yarmouth and Waveney will finally get the
facility they so desperately deserve. We hope the centre’s design will help
inspire both staff and visitors. It has been a privilege for us to help realise
this dream for the Palliative Care East appeal.”
ISG’s Ian Gifford –
managing director – East, said: “The community involvement in this special
project has proved absolutely vital in translating the vision for a centre of
excellence for palliative and supportive care in Norfolk into a reality. Handing
over this building marks the culmination of an inspiring fund raising effort leading
to the creation of an outstanding regional care resource, which will benefit both
patients and their families.”
