Access All AreAs
Anew initiative is set to make Barnet, Chase Farm and the Royal Free hospitals more accessible and inclusive for patients.
Supported by a £20,000 grant from the Royal Free Charity, the project aims to improve the accessbility of the Royal Free London’s digital platforms and physical spaces. The project included an extensive audit by people with lived experience of disability, working with the Asian Disability Network.
The project is led by Apuuli Harrison, equality, diversity, inclusion and engagement manager. Apuuli said: “Accessibility is often overlooked until a voice emerges to advocate for change and improvement.”
One of the key successes of the project was the revamp of the trust’s patient portal and website.
By working with the trust’s web development team and incorporating feedback from the audit, the project team influenced a more user-friendly and accessible platform.
The information was reorganised, making it easier to navigate and find relevant resources, such as details on disability access and accessibility services.
The trust has also made progress in improving physical accessibility across its hospital sites, by:
• improving signage
• increasing the availability of assistive equipment
• improving seating in waiting areas
• providing clear guidance on navigating the buildings.
Apuuli is now working on using the results of the audit to make ongoing improvements.
support for pAtients with sight loss
renu Walia and Claire Kelly, eye care liaison officers, have spearheaded the introduction of new sighted guiding training to Royal Free Charity volunteers.
Renu is based at Chase Farm Hospital and Claire works from the Royal Free Hospital. Their role is to support patients with sight loss and visual impairments. Thanks to a collaboration with the charity, they are now delivering training to equip volunteers with skills to assist patients and visitors, including correct greeting techniques and safe guiding methods.
Renu explained: “Some patients don’t come to hospital because they lack confidence, fearing a lack of support for their sight loss.”
The charity hopes the initiative will boost patient confidence when coming into hospital while helping volunteers to develop transferable life skills.
new tools to bridge communicAtion gAps
At North Middlesex University Hospital, Manal Sadik, associate director for health equity, secured Royal Free Charity funding for a project to address communication barriers in the busy emergency department. The resulting communications box includes resources like a whiteboard, magnifying sheets, a portable hearing loop and visual aids to help staff communicate better with patients.
Manal explains the box’s versatility: “It caters for a broad group of people, those who do not speak English and those with neurodiversity or learning disabilities.
“Knowing these resources are available reduces anxiety; it means patients are more likely to come to hospital when they need to.”
▲ A training session for young volunteers where they wore glasses that simulate the experience of various eye conditions
supporting nhs stAff in Anti-rAcism drive
the Royal Free Charity funds a multi-million pound programme of support for NHS staff. It ranges from psychological first aid training and free massage therapy to refurbishing garden areas and staff rooms. Now, that support includes anti-racism training.
So far:
The Freedom from Racism at the Free programme helps staff to fight racism at work and make their hospitals better places for everyone.
This programme is available to all Royal Free London staff and it focuses on education and skill-building.
• more than 400 staff members have attended an introduction to anti-racism course.
• more than 130 staff members have taken part in an online four-day programme called With:Stand which comprises activity, discussion and reflection. This is part of a suite of interventions that have been designed to action change.
▲ The anti-rascim programme won the celebrating diversity award at this year’s Royal Free London staff awards
Deborah Sanders, chief executive of Barnet Hospital, explained:
“When we think of racism it is easy to think just in terms of overt, visible things which we would never do and so therefore believe we are not racist.
Jaz Marques, adult nursing student, clinical assistant and member of Flourish @ the Free, took part in the With:Stand course.
Speaking about her experience, Jaz said: “The programme offers valuable insights and practical tools for understanding and addressing inequality. It empowers individuals to speak their truth, advocate for themselves and others, and contribute to creating a more inclusive and equitable society.
“The experience has been transformative.”
“Subtle acts of racism can be equally damaging though; for example, if we don’t challenge an offensive comment and let it go unchecked.
“We are striving to be anti-racist, not simply non-racist.”
She added: “The programme provided me with tools to empower myself, understand the dynamics of inequality and advocate effectively for change within my community and workplace. It reinforced the idea that creating a culture of inclusion requires intentional effort and ongoing commitment.”
Staff who complete the course attend a graduation ceremony and receive a certificate.
“I greatly encourage people to join the programme,” said Sarah Hillyard-Hayes, discharge coordinator at the Royal Free Hospital. “There is much to learn and there is much to gain in joining.”
▲ Shalita Maloney, a support worker specialising in prostate cancer, called the experience “motivating, positive and liberating”
freefAlling for the royAl free chArity f
or many people, jumping out of a plane would be a terrifying ordeal. Throw in a fear of heights and you would think completing a skydive would be impossible.
That didn’t stop 70-year-old Christine Frangiamore from taking on the challenge.
Despite her fear of heights, Christine was inspired to take on a charity skydive after she saw on social media that a 95-yearold woman had completed the incredible feat.
She chose the Royal Free Charity to benefit from her fundraising because of her connection as a patient at Chase Farm Hospital – one of the Royal Free London’s hospitals that the charity supports.
Christine said: “Chase Farm is my local hospital and it’s where I gave birth to my two children and where my eldest grandson was born 30 years later. Chase Farm staff also looked after both my parents, my late dad and my mum who has just reached her 93rd birthday.”
Explaining why she chose to fundraise, she added: “My daughter Dani works for the charity. I’m able to have a true insight into all the wonderful things that the charity does on a daily basis and all the support they offer patients and staff along with the research they fund.”
She took the plunge in August at Sibson Airfield in Peterborough, freefalling in a tandem-skydive with the team at UK Parachute. So far, Christine has raised over £1,200.
▲ After turning 70 in February, Christine decided to do a charity skydive
▲ The plane reached heights of 13,000 feet before Christine leapt out
fAmily honours prAdip by funding trAnsplAnt reseArch
In memory of Pradip, a Royal Free Hospital patient who died last autumn, his family is raising funds for research to prevent graft rejection in transplant patients - a cause close to Pradip’s heart after his own transplant experience.
in 2017, after developing renal failure due to a childhood infection, Pradip Patel underwent a kidney transplant. While the surgery was initially successful, his body soon began to reject the new organ, a lifethreatening complication that affects many transplant recipients.
Pradip faced prolonged therapy and a gruelling recovery process. Once he was well enough, he organised a golf charity event, raising £16,000 to support research into organ rejection.
His commitment to supporting research was recognised with an invitation to attend the formal opening of the Pears Building in 2021, the purpose-built home of the Institute of Immunity and Transplantation for scientists investigating the human immune system.
Mina Patel, Pradip’s wife said: “The successful transplant gave Pradip a second chance at life and we are forever grateful for the extra years we got to spend with him. As a family, we want to continue his charitable legacy and support others in a similar position to give them the best chance of post-transplant success.”
Following his death last autumn, family and friends raised a further £10,000 by donating in lieu of flowers.
To mark the first anniversary of Pradip’s death, his family organised a fundraising golf day and dinner to continue his charitable legacy. This, along with donations from the family, will raise even more money to further the research that Pradip supported.
▲ Pradip and Mina
The research
Graft rejection occurs when the immune system attacks the transplanted organ, viewing it as a foreign threat. It occurs in about 20-30% of transplant recipients, and if not treated promptly, it can leave the transplanted organ scarred and may result in longterm poor function.
Professor Reza Motallebzadeh is a renal transplantation surgeon and leading researcher at the Institute of Immunity and Transplantation.
Prof Motallebzadeh said: “I am so honoured that the Patel family and friends are supporting my research efforts and continuing Pradip’s legacy of philanthropy.
“My team’s work aims to better understand the role of the gut-immune axis in kidney transplant rejection. It has begun to reveal how alterations in the gut microbiome can affect the production of key metabolites that either enhance or diminish the immune response to a kidney transplant.”
This research will help the design of novel interventions that can better mitigate the risk of rejection, and lead to longer survival of kidney transplants.
▲ Prof Motallebzadeh and Pradip pictured at the opening of the Pears Building in 2021
▲ Pradip and his family
chArity funding boost for residents’ heAlth
The Royal Free Charity is improving health beyond hospitals by supporting projects that help people in the community.
A Cancer screening
project funded by the Royal Free Charity is set to make it easier for people with learning disabilities in Camden and Islington to access cancer screening.
The £350,000 grant will help tackle the barriers that often prevent or deter people with learning disabilities from getting important health checks that can detect cancer at an early stage.
A second project was awarded £22k funding to improve access to breast screening services for women with learning disabilities.
Women aged 50 to 71 are routinely offered breast screening every three years. People with learning disabilities are 14% less likely to attend their invitation for screening.
This new project aims to identify women who may need extra help to attend their appointments and ensure they receive the care they need.
Jon Spiers, the charity’s chief executive, said: “Cancer screening saves lives but access to the NHS’s vital screening services isn’t always equitable, especially for people with learning disabilities.
“We’re delighted to be funding these life-saving projects because we want local people with learning disabilities to feel safe and confident when they’re invited to cancer screening. We hope this means more cancers are identified as early as possible, giving patients the best chance of their treatment being successful.”
A Reducing the risk of disease
nother significant effort funded by the Royal Free Charity is aimed at reducing the risk of cancer and cardiovascular disease among residents of north central London.
The charity has awarded a £360,000 grant to establish a new faculty of population health for the Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust and North Middlesex University Hospital NHS Trust.
This initiative, known as Making Every Contact Count, encourages healthcare professionals to use every interaction with patients as an opportunity to promote healthier lifestyle choices.
By focusing on prevention, this programme hopes to reduce health inequalities and save lives, particularly among the most deprived communities.
“I want to keep my daughters’ names alive and I want to thank the NHS staff who cared for them so well. It’s time to give something back.”
robin Das, whose daughters Ratna and Heera died from an auto-immune disease affecting their kidneys, has generously decided to give a gift in his will to the Royal Free Charity as a lasting tribute to the sisters.
Over many years of treatment at the Royal Free Hospital for their severe chronic kidney disorder, Ratna and Heera developed a special relationship with the staff, whose care and compassion made each hospital visit a little easier for the family.
Robin said: “I’m forever grateful to everyone who was involved with the care that my daughters received over the years, My dream is that my legacy will help advance renal research and bring advantages for patients in the future.”
leaving a gift in your will to the Royal Free Charity will ensure they can continue to provide funding and services like those you’ve read about in this magazine – and much more.
You can find out more by requesting the charity’s free gifts in wills guide. It explains everything you need to know in a clear, easy to read format. You can also find out about free will-writing services.
To request a copy of the guide: Call the charity on 020 7317 7772 Email legacies@royalfreecharity.org
Complete an online form at royalfreecharity.org/gifts-in-wills
▲ Robin Das