HEALTH Secretary Andrew Lansley is to open a £1m in-patient unit at a New Forest hospice.
Mr Lansley will chat to patients at Oakhaven Hos-pice in Lymington and tour the new facilities, which have been partly funded by the Department for Health.
The extension has enabled the complex to increase the number of in-patient beds from eight to 12.
Oakhaven has already laid the foundations for another four rooms that could be added in the future.
The hospice takes patients from the age of 16 and has about 180 people on its books at any one time.
Many are suffering from cancer but staff also treat a wide range of other conditions.
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