A nightclub has helped Basingstoke Hospital buy much-needed equipment.
Liquid nightclub in Festival Place donated £2,200 to the North Hampshire Medical Fund, which used the cash to buy a specialist wheelchair.
The wheelchair will be used by children aged from three to 11 who are recovering after hip operations.
Julia Graham, pediatric therapy service manager at Basingstoke and North Hants Hospital, said the wheelchair will benefit both children and their families.
She said that some youngsters undergoing hip operations are put into plaster casts from the chest to their feet, preventing any movement of the lower body.
She said: “It will make a huge difference to the children during their time in a cast, and it will help their families as well. It is quite a boost to get this wheelchair for the hospital. We do get some parents ringing us in a distressed state asking how they are going to cope. Now at least we have something to offer them.”
Parents will be given the wheelchair to take home while their child is in their cast for up to 18 weeks.
San Van, manager of Liquid Basingstoke, said: “It is something that you don’t think off. I find it impossible to go three minutes without moving and I can’t imagine what it would be like not being able to move for 18 weeks.
“When children are that young, being immobile can be damaging as they can have a bad experience. So the wheelchair should, hopefully, make a difficult time a little bit easier.
“The fundraiser was about us giving to the local community.”
The North Hampshire Medical Fund is an independent charity that buys equipment outside of the health service budgets.
It is currently fundraising to buy a second wheelchair for the hospital to help children aged under five.
For more information, call 01256 314759.
